Wi&  teaching  of  Jesus 


THE 
SCRIPTURES 


*     AP^  •  A  1805      *, 


%SiE^ 


BS    2415     .A2    T4    v. 4 
Teachings    of   Jesus 
concerning    the 


THE  TEACHINGS  OF  JESUS 
Edited  by  JOHN  H.  KERR,  D.  D. 


THE   TEACHING   OF   JESUS 

CONCERNING 

THE  SCRIPTURES 


David  James  Burrell,  D.  D.,  LL.  D. 


THE  TEACHINGS  OF  JESUS 

CONCERNING 

HIS  OWN  MISSION.         Frank  H.  Foster.      Ready. 
THE  KINGDOM  OF  GOD  AND  THE  CHURCH. 
Geerhardus  Vos.        Ready. 
GOD  THE  FATHER 

Archibald  Thomas  Robertson.  " 

THE  SCRIPTURES.     David  James  Burrell. 

HIS  OWN  PERSON hi  preparation. 

CHRISTIAN  CONDUCT 

THE  HOLY  SPIRIT 

THE  FUTURE  LIFE 

THE  FAMILY 

THE  CHRISTIAN  LIFE 

A    Series  of  volumes   on  the    "  Teachings  of   Jesus " 
by  eminent  writers  and  divines. 

Cloth  bound.     i2mo.     Price  75  cts.  each  postpaid. 

AMERICAN  TRACT  SOCIETY. 


THE  TEACHING  OF  JESUS 


CONCERNING 


THE    SCRIPTURES 


David  James  Burr  ell,  D.D.,  LL.D. 


AMERICAN   TRACT   SOCIETY 

150  NASSAU  STREET 
NEW  YORK 


COPYRIGHT,    I9O4 
BY   AMERICAN   TRACT   SOCIETY 


PREFACE 


/f  MAN  named  Jesus  claims  to  be 
yl  the  incarnate  Son  of  God. 
Whence  has  he  come  ?  From 
"  the  glory  which  he  had  with  the 
Father  before  the  world  was."  What 
is  he  doing  here  ?  He  says  that  he  has 
come  into  the  world  to  teach  the  truth  ; 
"  To  this  end  was  I  born  and  for  this 
cause  came  I  into  the  world,  that  I  should 
bear  witness  unto  the  truth"  (Johnxviii. 
37). 

He  finds  a  book  in  the  hands  of  the 
people  which  is  generally  regarded  as 
true  and  trustworthy  every  way.  They 
hold  it  to  be  an   "  infallible  rule  of  faith 


vi  Preface 

and  practice,"  that  is  to  say,  it  is  their 
ultimate  authority  in  doctrine  and  ethics. 
This  book  is  constantly  before  him. 
What  will  he  do  with  it  ?  What  will  he 
have  to  say  about  it  ? 

This  question  is  one  of  supreme  im- 
portance to  those  who  profess  to  follow 
him.  As  to  others,  they  are  at  liberty  to 
believe  what  they  like  ;  but  those  who 
call  themselves  disciples  of  Jesus  have  no 
alternative  but  to  renounce  him  or  to 
accept  what  he  says.  His  Court  is  the 
Court  of  Last  Resort,  for  them.  It  is 
just  as  well  to  remember  this,  in  these 
controversial  times.  There  are  teachers 
and  teachers,  but  there  is  only  one  teacher 
for  Christians.  When  Hillel  and  Sham- 
mai  have  spoken  their  last  word,  we 
await  his  "  Verily,  verily,  I  say  unto 
you."  Any  man  is  at  liberty  to  quit 
Christ ;  but  no  man  can  cleave  to  Christ 
and  withhold  aught  of  loyalty  from  him. 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

I.  Antecedent    Presumption    as    to 
the  Attitude  of  Jesus  toward 

the  Scriptures I 

II.  The    Actual    Attitude    of    Jesus 

TOWARD  THE  SCRIPTURES         .        .  1 8 

III.  The    Specific   Teaching  of    Jesus 

Concerning  the  Scriptures    .         87 

IV.  The    Provision   of   Jesus   for   the 

Writing    of    the    New  Testa- 
ment         162 

V.  The   Silence    of   Jesus  as   to  Al- 
leged Errors  of  the  Scriptures.  163 
VI.  Summary  and  Conclusion     .  180 
Appendices 195 

A.  The  Incarnation      .     .  195 

B.  Other  Incarnations      .  196 

C.  Errors  in  Scripture      .  198 

D.  Kenosis 199 

Indices 203,  209 

vii 


CHAPTER  I 

Antecedent  Presumption  as  to  the 
Attitude  of  Jesus  toward  the 
Scriptures. 

/F  there  were  no  Bible  we  should  all 
be  wondering  why  ;  nor  would  our 
wonder  cease  until  we  had  made  a 
Bible,  however  full  of  faults,  to  satisfy  it. 
This  is  why  there  are  so  many  "  sacred 
books"  in  the  world.  They  represent 
not  only  a  universal  longing  but  a  uni- 
versal sense  of  the  fitness  of  things.  Men 
want  a  Bible  and  must  have  it.  "  There 
is  a  spirit  in  man  "  and  "  the  spirit  of  man 
is  the  candle  of  the  Lord."     We  were 


2  The  Scriptures 

made  in  God's  likeness  and,  fallen  though 
we  are,  the  glory  is  not  all  departed. 
There  are  memories,  hopes,  desires,  as- 
pirations that  bind  us  back  to  God.* 
One  of  the  lingering  echoes  of  our  pris- 
tine dignity  when  we  walked  with  God 
in  the  Garden  in  the  cool  of  the  day  is 
the  feeling,  everywhere  prevalent,  that 
he  somehow  still  holds  converse  with  us. 

To  the  calm  judgment  of  a  Baconian 
logician  this  proves  nothing.  Is  it  not 
just  possible,  however,  that  there  are 
more  things  in  heaven  and  earth  than  the 
inductive  sages  can  demonstrate  by  their 
system  of  reasoning  ?  Is  it  quite  neces- 
sary to  assume  that  all  truth,  particularly 
such  as  falls  outside  the  province  of  the 
five  physical  senses,  must  be  classified 
under  the  formula  quod  erat  demonstran- 
dum ?  How,  then,  about  the  things  that 
are  "  spiritually  discerned  "  ? 

This  is  not  to  say,  however,  that  a  dem- 

*  The  word  "  religion  "   is  held  by  many  to  be  from    re- 
ligare,  meaning  "  to  bind  back." 


Antecedent  Presumption        3 

onstration  of  the  truth  of  Scripture  can- 
not be  made.  Far  from  it.  But  we 
thus  justify  our  beginning  this  little 
book  with  certain  universal  facts  which 
furnish  only  circumstantial  evidence ; 
facts  which,  like  the  ergo  in  cogito  ergo 
sum,  draw  on  the  imagination.  They  do 
not  land  us  in  the  safe  harbor  of  convic- 
tion ;  but  they  make  it  pretty  certain  that 
the  harbor  is  somewhere  and  that,  with 
favoring  winds,  we  may  presently  sail 
into  it.  In  other  words,  they  create  a 
presumption  in  favor  of  the  argument 
lying  farther  on. 

I 

We  say,  then,  at  the  outset,  that  //  there 
is  a  God  anywhere  in  the  universe,  and  if 
we  are  his  children,  he  cannot  fail  to  com- 
municate with  us  in  some  way.  To  think 
otherwise  would  be  to  assume  that  he 
is  either  unable  or  unwilling  to  do  so. 
In  the  former  case  he  would  not  be  om- 
nipotent;    in    the  latter  case  he  would 


4  The  Scriptures 

not  be  kind,  and  in  either  case  we  should 
have  no  practical  interest  in  him  because 
he  would  not  be  God. 

II 

Our  second  step  brings  us  to  the  as- 
sumption that  //  God  reveals  himself  at  all 
it  will  probably  be  in  a  human  form. 

He  is  said  to  have  created  man  in  his 
own  image  and  after  his  likeness,  the 
highest  of  and  dominant  among  the 
orders  of  life.  Is  not  this,  therefore,  the 
form  in  which  he  would  probably  em- 
body himself,  if  he  is  to  embody  himself 
at  all  ? 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that  the  doctrine 
of  the  incarnation,  so  far  from  being  the 
sole  possession  of  the  Christian  Church, 
is  practically  universal ;  though  often- 
times so  vague  and  even  grotesque  as  to 
furnish  a  pathetic  commentary  on  the 
inadequacy  of  human  wisdom  to  answer 
human  need.  From  which  we  infer 
that  it  is  manifestly  in  accord  with  reason, 


Antecedent  Presumption        5 

in  so  far  as  reason  is  represented  in  the 
intuitions  of  the  race.  The  false  reli- 
gions abound  in  avatars  and  theophanies, 
vain  gropings  toward  a  true  embodiment 
of  God.* 

Men  search  for  God  in  nature  ;  and  be- 
hold the  Pantheon !  Here  are  gods 
from  hill  and  valley ;  nymphs,  dryads, 
nereids,  deifications  of  nature  in  every 
form.  Men  worship  the  sun,  the  scara- 
baeus,  great  Moloch  with  his  fiery  arms, 
a  lizard,  a  crocodile,  an  onion.  O  the 
lamentable    depths    to    which    the   race 

*  "  God's  general  revelation  of  himself  is  by  fixed  laws  of 
order  which  know  no  pity,  which  show  no  forgiveness,  which 
are  indifferent  to  the  interests  of  individuals,  which  conceal 
the  divine  character  in  some  respects  while  they  reveal  it  in 
others.  God's  special  revelation  of  himself  by  intervening 
among  these  laws  in  miraculous  acts  and  inspired  words  brings 
him  nearer  to  individual  hearts,  and  yet  it  leaves  him  far  away  ; 
for,  after  all,  but  signs  and  sounds  have  been  given,  not  him- 
self ;  he  is  himself  still  shrouded  in  darkness,  still  hidden 
where  no  man  can  approach  him.  Can  he  come  yet  nearer 
man,  that  man  may  draw  closer  to  him  ?  Christianity  an- 
swers, and  its  answer  is  Christ, — the  person,  the  character  and 
the  work  of  Christ."  Doctor  Robert  Flint  in  "  Faiths  of  the 
World." 


6  The  Scriptures 

has  fallen  in  its  eagerness  to  find  or 
make  a  suitable  symbol  of  the  invisible 
God! 

They  search  for  him  in  philosophy  with 
no  better  result.  The  thinkers  of  the 
Orient  ended  their  researches  in  a  poly- 
theistic deification  of  the  universe ;  affirm- 
ing that  all  things  are  God.  The  Occi- 
dentals, on  the  other  hand,  arrived  at 
pantheism ;  affirming  that  God  is  all  things. 
These  ultimates  were  equally  false  and 
equally  true.* 

Shall  God  be  evolved,  then,  from  the 
inner  consciousness  ?  The  utmost  that  a 
man  can  do  in  this  direction  is  to  project 
himself  in  large  dimensions  on  the  skies, 
like  the  Brocken  of  the  Alps.  As  there 
are  many  men  of  many  minds  the  result 

*  Thales  professed  to  have  discovered  in  water  the  potency 
of  life.  Xenophanes  proclaimed  that  nothing  could  be  more 
divine  than  thought.  Plato  anticipated  the  investigations  of 
modern  scientists  who  declare  that  the  Ultimate  is  all-pervad- 
ing law  or  force.  The  Stoics  were  Agnostics,  giving  up  the 
quest  in  despair ;  saying,  like  Fichte,  "  We  know  nothing, 
not  even  that  we  know  nothing." 


Antecedent  Presumption        7 

must  be  a  corresponding  multiplicity  of 
gods- 

How  then  can  God  unveil  himself  ? 
We  have  exhausted  our  resources.  The 
world  grows  weary  of  seeking  him. 
The  fulness  of  time  is  the  hour  of 
despair.  He  now  appears,  as  announced 
in  the  protevangel,  "  The  seed  of  woman 
shall  bruise  the  serpent's  head."  The 
great  Father  desires  to  communicate 
with  his  children.  Our  human  medium 
of  communication  is  language.  The 
"word"  of  the  Father  shall  be  articu- 
lated for  his  children's  use.  The  Word 
is  made  flesh  and  dwells  among  us.* 

God  is  manifest  in  flesh.  Theanthropos  ! 
The  child  wrapped  in  swaddling  bands 
is  the  very  God  that  sat  upon  the  circle 
of  the  universe  and  called  into  being 
things  that  were  not.  The  little  hand, 
that  lies,  pink  and  dimpled,  on  its  mother's 
breast,  is  the  same  that  spun  the  new- 
created  worlds  into  space,  and  rolls  the 

*  See  Appendix  A. 


8  The  Scriptures 

rattling  thunders  through  the  skies.  The 
lips  that  murmur  in  response  to  her  lul- 
laby are  destined  to  speak  the  words 
whereat,  in  the  process  of  the  centuries, 
the  thrones  of  the  Cassars  shall  fall  in  ir- 
remediable ruin  and  give  way  to  a  king- 
dom of  truth  and  righteousness.  H  e  hath 
upon  his  vesture  and  his  thigh  a  name 
written — a  name  to  be  made  clearer  and 
clearer  in  the  logic  of  events — "  King  of 
kings  and  Lord  of  lords." 

The  truth  thus  stated  is  fundamental  to 
Christianity.  It  bears  the  same  relation 
to  our  doctrinal  system  that  a  mainspring 
bears  to  a  watch.  Every  pin  and  wheel 
and  lever  of  the  mechanism  is  more 
or  less  important ;  but  break  the  main- 
spring and  the  watch  stops. 

Not  only  so,  this  doctrine  is  the  touch- 
stone of  Christian  sincerity  ;  as  it  is 
written,  "  Hereby  know  we  the  Spirit 
of  God :  every  spirit  that  confesseth 
that  Jesus  Christ  is  come  in  flesh  is 
of  God  :  and  every  spirit  that  confesseth 


Antecedent  Presumption        9 

not  Jesus  is   not  of  God"  (1  John  iv. 
2).* 

Ill 

This  brings  us  to  the  third  step  in  our 
presumption ;  namely,  If  God  were  to  re- 
veal himself  in  human  form  he  would  prob- 
ably supplement  and  complement  that  In- 
carnation by  a  Scripture. 

Otherwise  how  would  the  Incarnation 
be  of  any  practical  use  beyond  its  own 
place  and  time  ?  The  true  religion  must, 
presumably,  be  coextensive  with  all  races 
and  generations.  It  must  extend  its 
beneficence  not  only  "  from  the  river  to 
the  ends  of  the  earth"  but  from  Adam 
to  the  last  man.  In  order  to  accomplish 
this  an  Incarnation  of  God,  unless  other 
provision  was  made,  would  have  to  be 
not  only  ubiquitous  but  contemporane- 
ous with  the  whole  human  race  !  Now 
Christ  lived  in  a  small  corner  of  a  remote 
portion  of  the  earth,  during  a  brief  period 
of  only  thirty-three  years.     It  is  claimed, 

*  See  Appendix  B. 


io  The  Scriptures 

however,  that  the  benefits  of  that  short 
and  circumscribed  life  are  made  both 
universal  and  perpetual  by  the  Scriptures 
which  contain  the  record  of  it.  In  the 
Old  Testament  he  is  set  forth  prophetic- 
ally as  One  who  should,  in  the  fulness  of 
time,  be  born  of  a  virgin,  and  whose 
name  should  be  called  Immanuel, 
"which  is,  being  interpreted,  God-with- 
us."  In  the  New  Testament  he  is  set 
forth  as  the  historic  Incarnation  of  Deity. 
In  the  Old  and  New  Testaments  com- 
bined he  is  presented  to  all  ages  and  gen- 
erations, from  the  beginning  to  the  end 
of  the  world,  as  God  manifest  in  flesh  for 
the  deliverance  of  the  world  from  sin. 

It  is  difficult  to  imagine  how  God 
could  have  made  himself  known  to  men 
in  any  other  way.  We  are  not  unaware 
of  the  importance  of  natural  theology  ; 
but  nature  "speaks  a  various  tongue." 
The  vernal  winds  whisper  one  thing  and 
Euroclydon  screams  another.  A  stranger 
in  a  strange  land,  gazing   at    the    stars, 


Antecedent  Presumption       1 1 

solaces  his  loneliness  with  the  thought 
that  they  are  shining  also  on  his  distant 
loved  ones  ;  but  that  does  not  answer  the 
purpose  of  a  letter  from  home.  Cole- 
ridge in  the  Valley  of  Chamounix  hears 
"  all  the  signs  and  wonders  of  the  ele- 
ments "  echoing  God  ;  but  this  falls  in- 
finitely short  of  the  satisfaction  he  feels 
on  opening  the  Book  and  seeing  his 
Father's  name  ;  a  satisfaction  which  he 
expresses  thus,  "  It  finds  me." 

It  is  not  unnatural,  I  say,  that  God's 
children  in  the  far  country  should  look 
for  such  a  letter  from  home.  And  they 
all  do.  Witness  the  sacred  books  of  all 
the  nations.  Poor  counterfeits,  indeed, 
but  how  pathetic  !  They  certify  to  a 
universal  longing.  The  expatriates  have 
been  "  watching  the  mails "  from  the 
beginning  of  the  ages.  Is  there,  then, 
no  word  from  God  ? 

Enter,  the  Bible  with  its  claim.  But 
how  shall  we  know  that  the  Bible  is 
the    veritable    Word    of     God  ?     Why 


12  The  Scriptures 

not  the  Vedas,  the  Tripitaka,  the 
Zend-Avesta,  the  Analects  of  Con- 
fucius or  the  Koran  ?  Reason  must  an- 
swer. All,  including  the  Bible,  are 
bound  to  stand  or  fall  upon  their  com- 
parative merits.  And  the  question  is 
not,  Which  is  the  best  ?  but,  Which  is 
the  one  ?  For  truth  is  one,  absolute  and 
exclusive.  And  it  should  be  obvious 
that  when  God  reveals  the  truth,  he 
makes  no  mistakes ;  he  kindles  no  false 
beacons  ;  he  tells  no  lies. 

In  this  inquiry  we  must  be  guided  by 
internal  evidence.  Here  is  one  of  the 
functions  of  scholarship.  It  kindles  the 
fires  under  all  the  sacred  books  ;  if  they 
burn,  so  be  it.  The  true  Word  must 
come  from  the  flames  without  so  much 
as  the  smell  of  smoke  upon  it.  Let  those 
who  doubt  the  veracity  of  Scripture  turn 
on  the  fuming  and  corrosive  acids  of 
adverse  criticism.  It  must  abide  the 
issue.  And,  perpetually,  the  world  looks 
on. 


Antecedent  Presumption       13 

As  to  the  result,  every  man  must  judge 
for  himself  whether  the  Bible  verifies  its 
claim  or  not.  But  history  has  some- 
what to  say.  The  "logic  of  events"  is 
irrefutable.  It  is  a  significant  fact  that 
the  pathway  of  the  centuries  is  lined  with 
discredited  and  discarded  oracles.  The 
sacred  books  of  antiquity  were  weighed 
successively  in  the  balance  and  found 
wanting.  Where  is  the  Egyptian  "  Book 
of  the  Dead  "  ?  It  survives  only  in  frag- 
ments deciphered  from  mummy-crypts 
and  bands  of  byssus.  Where  are  the 
mythologies  of  the  Greeks,  the  Romans 
and  the  Norsemen  ?  Where  are  the 
philosophies  of  Greece  ?  Of  devotees 
they  have  practically  none  ;  the  spectres 
of  disappointment  are  their  only 
mourners.  And  of  the  sacred  books  of 
Buddhism,  Brahmanism  and  Islam, 
which  still  survive,  three  things  must  be 
observed  :  first,  infallibility  is  not  claimed 
for  them  ;  second,  they  have  no  calculable 
following  among  the  civilized  nations  of 


14  The  Scriptures 

the  earth  ;  and  third,  they  represent  re- 
ligions which  are  stricken  with  death. 

Meanwhile,  what  of  the  Bible  ?  It  is 
the  Book  of  Christendom — that  charmed 
circle  which  includes  practically  all  the 
light  and  life  of  these  days.  It  is  the 
center  of  a  controversy  which  represents 
the  mental  and  moral  energy  of  the 
world.  It  counts  among  its  friends  and 
defenders  an  ever  increasing  number  of 
those  who  are  distinguished  for  character 
and  culture.  Its  enemies  contribute  to 
its  triumph  and  perpetuity  by  their  as- 
saults upon  it.  "  Hammer  away,  ye 
rebel  bands  ;  your  hammers  break,  God's 
anvil  stands  !  '  It  may  be  confidently 
affirmed  that  more  people  are  reading 
the  Bible  to-day  than  ever  before  ;  and 
— as  certified  by  the  roll-call  of  the  uni- 
versal church — more  people  than  ever  are 
affixing  their  faith  to  it.  We  do  not  say 
that  this  proves  the  truth  of  the  Bible, 
by  any  means,  but  only  that  it  opens  the 
way.     It  warrants  us  in  affirming  that  it 


Antecedent  Presumption       15 

looks  as  if  there  might,  perhaps,  be 
something  in  the  claim  that  it  is  the 
veritable  Word  of  God. 

IV 

Our  fourth  step  brings  us  to  a  full 
statement  of  our  antecedent  presumption, 
to  wit :  If  God  were  to  reveal  himself  in 
both  human  form  and  in  Scripture,  the  Man 
and  the  Book  would  be  in  perfect  accord  with 
each  other. 

On  the  one  hand,  the  Book  would  be 
not  only  true,  in  the  necessity  of  the 
case,  but  a  complete  setting  forth  of  God 
so  far  as  it  is  important  that  man  should 
know  him.  It  does  not  fall  within  the 
writer's  province,  at  this  time,  to  traverse 
the  argument  for  the  authenticity  and 
trustworthiness  of  Scripture  except  so 
far  as  that  is  covered  by  the  teachings  of 
Christ.  Let  it  suffice  here  to  say  that 
the  Bible  claims  to  be  the  written  Word 
of  God. 

On  the  other  hand,  a  man  claiming  to 


1 6  The  Scriptures 

be  incarnate  God  would  have  to  be,  in 
the  necessity  of  the  case,  a  true  and  com- 
plete revelation  of  God  in  all  his  practical 
relations  with  us.  He  would  need  to  be, 
as  it  were,  the  articulate  speech  of  God 
addressed  to  men.  And  this  is  precisely 
the  claim  which  is  made  for  Jesus  Christ. 
"  In  the  beginning  was  the  Word,  and  the 
Word  was  with  God,  and  the  Word  was 
God.  And  the  Word  became  flesh  and 
dwelt  among  us  (and  we  beheld  his  glory, 
glory  as  of  the  only  begotten  of  the 
Father),  full  of  grace  and  truth"  (Johni. 
1,  14).  As  we  are  made  acquainted  with 
one  another  through  the  medium  of 
language,  so  the  eternal  Logos  in  his  in- 
carnation becomes,  as  it  were,  the  artic- 
ulated speech  of  God,  by  means  of  which 
we  know  him. 

If  these  respective  claims  of  Christ  and 
the  Bible  are  true,  we  should  expect  them 
to  agree,  each  with  the  other,  perfectly. 
If  they  meet  this  requirement,  we  must 
conclude  that  the  argument  for  the  truth 


Antecedent  Presumption       17 

of  either  is  strengthened  an  hundredfold. 
This  then  is  the  question :  Does  the  Bible 
bear  an  unequivocal  testimony  to  the 
claims  of  Jesus  as  the  Incarnate  Word, 
and  does  Jesus  bear  witness,  correspond- 
ingly, to  the  claim  of  the  Scriptures  as 
the  written  Word  of  God  ?  If  so,  in  the 
two  together,  constituting  the  binomial 
Word,  we  may  confidently  rest  as  in  a 
full,  true  and  final  revelation  of  God. 

It  is  only  with  the  latter  half  of  this 
question  that  the  writer  has  to  do.  His 
task  is  to  discover  and  state,  as  clearly  as 
possible,  what  the  Incarnate  Word  has  to  say 
respecting  the  Written  Word  of  God. 


CHAPTER  II 

The  Actual  Attitude  of  Jesus  to- 
ward the  Scriptures. 

~\  TO  amount  of  a  priori  argument, 
/  \     such  as  the  patient  reader  found  in 
Chapter  first,  can  settle  the  matter 
in  hand.     It  is  easy  enough  to  lay  down 
antecedent  presumptions  and   probabili- 
ties ;  but  the  question,  after  all,  is  purely 
a  question   of   fact :    What  was  Jesus's 
attitude    toward   the    Scriptures  ?      The 
obvious  way  to    arrive    at  a  satisfactory 
answer  is  by    making   a   comprehensive 
survey  of  his  life  and  teaching,  so  far  forth 
as  they  have  any  reference  whatsoever  to 
the  matter  before  us. 
18 


Actual  Attitude  19 

/.  The  Preparation 
Observe,  at  the  outset,  Jesus  knew  the 
Scriptures.  In  his  childhood  he  was  in- 
structed in  them.  He  was  surrounded 
by  a  religious  atmosphere.  The  mezuzah 
with  its  passage  of  Scripture  *  was  affixed 
to  the  doorpost  of  his  home.  Joseph  and 
Mary  were  loyal  Jews  and,  as  such,  nur- 
tured and  instructed  the  Holy  Child  in 
the  sacred  Word.  At  the  first  this  duty 
would  naturally  devolve  on  the  mother. 
"  It  needed  not  the  extravagant  lauda- 
tions, nor  the  promises  held  out  by  the 
rabbis,"  says  Edersheim,  "  to  incite  Jew- 
ish women  to  this  duty.  If  they  were 
true  to  their  descent,  it  would  come  al- 
most naturally  to  them.  But  while  the 
earliest  religious  teaching  would,  of  ne- 
cessity, come  from  the  lips  of  the  mother, 
it  was  the  father  who  was  '  bound  to 
teach  his  son.'  To  impart  to  the  child 
knowledge  of  the   Torah    conferred  as 

*  "  The  Lord  shall  preserve  thy  going  out  and  thy  coming 
in  from  this  time  forth  and  even  forevermore  "    (Ps.  cxxi.   8). 


20  The  Scriptures 

great  spiritual  distinction,  as  if  a  man  had 
received  the  Law  itself  on  Mount  Horeb. 
Every  other  engagement,  even  the  neces- 
sary meal,  should  give  place  to  this  para- 
mount duty  ;  nor  should  it  be  forgotten 
that,  while  here  real  labor  was  necessary, 
it  would  never  prove  fruitless.  That  man 
was  of  the  profane  vulgar  (an  Am  ha- 
arets),  who  had  sons  but  failed  to  bring 
them  up  in  the  knowledge  of  the 
Law."  * 

At  the  age  of  five  or  six  Jesus  was  sent 

*  Directly  the  child  learned  to  speak,  his  religious  instruc- 
tion was  to  begin — no  doubt,  with  such  verses  of  Holy  Scrip- 
ture as  composed  that  part  of  the  Jewish  liturgy,  which  an- 
swers to  our  creed.  Then  would  follow  other  passages  from 
the  Bible,  short  prayers,  and  select  sayings  of  the  sages.  Spe- 
cial attention  was  given  to  the  culture  of  the  memory,  since 
forgetfulness  might  prove  as  fatal  in  its  consequences  as  ig- 
norance or  neglect  of  the  Law.  Very  early  the  child  must 
have  been  taught  what  might  be  called  his  birthday-text — 
some  verse  of  Scripture  beginning,  or  ending  with,  or  at  least 
containing,  the  same  letters  at  his  Hebrew  name.  This  guard- 
ian-promise the  child  would  insert  in  its  daily  prayers.  The 
earliest  hymns  taught  would  be  the  Psalms  for  the  days  of 
the  week,  or  festive  Psalms,  such  as  the  Hallel,  or  those  con- 
nected with  the  festive  pilgrimages  to  Zion."  Edersheim's 
"  Life  and  Times  of  Jesus  the  Messiah." 


Actual  Attitude  21 

to  the  rabbinical  school,  where  the  Bible 
was  the  only  text-book.  The  course  of 
study  began  with  Leviticus  and  continued 
through  the  Pentateuch ;  after  which 
the  prophets  and  then  the  poetical  books 
were  taken  up.  Much  attention  was 
given  to  the  memorizing  of  certain  por- 
tions, particularly  the  important  pre- 
scripts of  the  law  and  the  acrostic  Psalms. 
At  ten  years  of  age  the  pupil  was  per- 
mitted to  enter  on  the  study  of  the 
Gemara  and  the  fundamental  doctrines  of 
the  Jewish  faith. 

In  this  connection  the  further  words 
of  Edersheim,  himself  a  Jew,  are  signifi- 
cant :  "  From  his  intimate  familiarity  with 
Holy  Scripture,  in  its  every  detail,  we 
may  be  allowed  to  infer  that  the  home 
of  Nazareth,  however  humble,  possessed 
a  precious  copy  of  the  sacred  volume  in 
its  entirety.  At  any  rate,  we  know  that 
from  earliest  childhood  it  must  have 
formed  the  meat  and  drink  of  the  God- 
man.     The  words  of  the   Lord,  as  re- 


22  The  Scriptures 

corded  by  St.  Matthew  and  St.  Luke, 
also  imply  that  the  Holy  Scriptures  which 
he  read  were  in  the  original  Hebrew, 
and  that  they  were  written  in  the  square, 
or  Assyrian,  characters.  Indeed,  as  the 
Pharisees  and  Sadducees  always  appealed 
to  the  Scriptures  in  the  original,  Jesus 
could  not  have  met  them  on  any  other 
ground  ;  and  it  was  this  which  gave  such 
point  to  his  frequent  expostulations  with 
them:  '  Have  ye  not  read  ? '  But  far  other 
thoughts  than  theirs  gathered  around  his 
study  of  the  Old  Testament  of  the  Scrip- 
tures. When  comparing  their  long  dis- 
cussions on  the  letter  and  law  of  Scripture 
with  his  references  to  the  Word  of  God, 
it  seems  as  if  it  were  quite  another  book 
which  was  handled.  As  we  gaze  into 
the  vast  glory  of  meaning  which  he  opens 
to  us  ;  follow  the  shining  track  of  heaven- 
ward living  to  which  he  points ;  behold 
the  lines  of  symbol,  type,  and  prediction 
converging  in  the  grand  unity  of  that 
kingdom  which  became  reality  in  him  ; 


Acttial  Attitude  23 

or  listen  as,  alternately,  some  question  of 
his  seems  to  rive  the  darkness  as  with 
flash  of  sudden  light,  or  some  sweet  prom- 
ise of  old  to  lull  the  storm,  some  earnest 
lesson  to  quiet  the  tossing  waves — we 
catch  faint,  it  may  be  far-off,  glimpses  of 
how,  in  that  early  child-life,  when  the 
Holy  Scriptures  were  his  special  study,  he 
must  have  read  them,  and  what  thoughts 
must  have  been  kindled  by  their  light. 
And  thus  better  than  before  can  we 
understand  it:  'And  the  Child  grew, 
and  waxed  strong  in  spirit,  filled  with 
wisdom,  and  the  grace  of  God  was  upon 
him."'* 

In  the  single  authoritative  glimpse 
which  we  have  into  the  early  life  of  Jesus 
we  find  him,  at  twelve  years  of  age,  in 
the  temple  sitting  in  the  midst  of  the  doc- 
tors, "  hearing  them  and  asking  questions 
and  answering  "  (Luke  ii.  41-50).  It  was 
probably  in  that  apartment  of  the  temple 
known  as  the  Hall  Gazith  ;  and  in  all  the 

*  Edersheim's  "  Life  and  Times  of  fesus  the  Messiah." 


24  The  Scriptures 

world  there  was  no  more  distinguished 
body  of  scholars  than  those  accustomed 
to  assemble  there.  Of  the  number  were 
Annas,  the  high  priest  and  president  of 
the  Sanhedrin ;  Ben  Uzziel,  the  Targum- 
ist  who  wrote  the  Chaldee  Paraphrase; 
Joseph  of  Arimathea,  a  man  of  wealth 
and  character ;  Ben  Buta,  who  had  been 
blinded  by  Herod  for  his  devotion  to  the 
Jewish  cause ;  Nicodemus ;  the  aged 
Hillel,  and  Shammai,  his  rival ;  and  Ga- 
maliel, a  professor  in  the  University  of 
Jerusalem,  known  as  "  the  Flower  of  the 
Law."  In  the  midst  of  such  a  distin- 
guished assemblage  stood  the  boy  of 
twelve,  "hearing,  asking  questions  and 
answering  them." 

No  intimation  is  given  as  to  the  themes 
traversed  in  this  remarkable  conference  ; 
but  we  cannot  go  far  wrong  in  suppos- 
ing that  it  had  to  do  particularly  with 
the  supreme  problems  of  life  to  wit : 
God,  man  and  the  reconciliation  of 
man  with  God.     The  basis  of  the  con- 


Actual  Attitude  25 

ference  was  doubtless  the  Holy  Scrip- 
tures, for  here  the  wonderful  Boy  and 
the  learned  Rabbis  were  on  common 
ground ;  and  the  one  truth  about  which 
the  conversation  turned  was,  to  a  moral 
certainty,  the  prophecies  of  the  com- 
ing of  the  Messiah,  which  were  called 
"  the  Hope  "  or  "  Consolation  of  Israel." 
It  would  be  scarcely  possible  for  such  a 
company  of  Biblical  experts,  under  such 
circumstances,  to  refrain  from  discussing 
it.  The  Boy  in  the  midst  of  them  would 
ask,  "  Who  is  this  Messiah  ?  When  he 
cometh,  how  will  ye  know  him  ?"  And 
they  would  answer,  "He  is  to  be  King 
of  Kings,  'great  David's  greater  Son.' 
In  the  fulness  of  time  he  will  appear  to 
deliver  Israel ;  and  he  will  reign  in  glory 
among  us. "  The  Boy  would  ask,  "  What 
then  is  the  meaning  of  this  scripture,  '  A 
virgin  shall  conceive  and  bear  a  son  and 
call  his  name  Immanuel,  which  being  in- 
terpreted is,  God  with  us ';  or  of  this,  '  He 
is  a  man  of  sorrows  and  acquainted  with 


26  The  Scriptures 

grief,  and  we  hid  as  it  were  our  faces 
from  him  ;  he  is  wounded  for  our  trans- 
gressions and  bruised  for  our  iniquities, 
that  by  his  stripes  we  might  be  healed '  ? 
Or  what  is  the  meaning  of  your  sacrifices  ? 
Why  is  the  blood  of  the  Paschal  lamb 
sprinkled  on  the  lintel  of  every  doorway 
and  upon  all  the  sacred  things  of  the  tem- 
ple ?  Why  this  blood,  blood,  blood  every- 
where?" And  they  could  only  say  in 
their  bewilderment,  "It  is  written  that 
if  a  man  sin  and  bring  a  lamb  without 
spot  or  blemish  to  the  altar,  his  sin  is 
taken  from  him."  "But  how  can  the 
blood  of  a  lamb  atone  for  sin  ?  How  can 
it  wash  away  the  crimson  stain?"  And 
they  knew  not.  This  boy  of  twelve 
was  their  Messiah ;  and  they  did  not  rec- 
ognize him.  He  was  himself  the  anti- 
type of  all  their  sacrifices.  His  was 
the  blood  that  should  cleanse  from  sin. 
Was  he  aware  of  his  personality  and 
mission  ?  Aye ;  always.  The  realization 
of  his  mission  began  with  his  dawning 


Actual  Attitude  27 

consciousness.  He  knew  who  he  was, 
whence  he  had  come  and  what  his 
errand  was.  Else  what  did  he  mean 
when  he  said  to  his  mother,  "  Wist  ye 
not  that  I  must  be  about  my  Father's 
business?"  It  is  true  that,  in  assuming 
mortal  form,  he  "  emptied  himself"  of 
the  outward  tokens  of  his  Godhood  ;  but 
never  for  a  moment  in  such  manner  as  to 
become  ignorant  of  his  mission  or  unable 
to  perform  it.* 

II.  His  Inauguration  into  His  Ministry 

The  time  having  come  for  the  begin- 
ning of  his  great  work,  he  one  day  closed 
the  carpenter  shop  and  never  returned  to 

*  The  proof-text  of  "the  Kenosis"  or  emptying  of  Christ 
is  Philippians  ii.  5-1 1.  It  affirms  of  Christ  that  he  laid  aside 
not  his  Godhood  but  the  "form  "  of  it ;  not  his  essential  glory 
but  the  "fashion"  of  it.  In  taking  upon  him  "the  form  of  a 
servant "  he  held  the  exercise  of  his  divine  attributes  in  abey- 
ance ;  as  a  King  lays  aside  his  crown,  scepter  and  purple  robe, 
but  always  within  reach.  On  frequent  occasions  he  exercised 
his  omnipotence,  omniscience  and  omnipresence ;  and  never 
was  he  so  divested  of  them  as  to  endanger  the  perfect  exercise 
of  his  functions  as  the  Christ  of  God. 


28  The  Scriptures 

it.  The  work  to  which  he  had  looked 
forward  with  desire,  saying,  "  I  have  a 
baptism  to  be  baptized  with  and  how 
is  my  soul  straitened  until  I  shall  ac- 
complish it,"  was  before  him. 

Observe  how,  from  this  time  forward,  he 
made  the  Scriptures  his  rule  of  faith  and 
practice.  He  betook  himself,  straight- 
way, to  the  Jordan,  where  John  was 
baptizing,  and  presented  himself  "  to  be 
baptized  of  him."  And  when  John  re- 
fused saying,  "  I  have  need  to  be  baptized 
of  thee,  and  comest  thus  to  me  ?  "  he 
had  immediate  recourse  to  the  Scrip- 
tures, replying,  "  Suffer  it  now  ;  for  thus 
it  be cometh  us  to  fulfil  all  righteousness''' 
(Matt.  iii.  13-17).  In  the  Law  it  was 
prescribed  that  Aaron  and  his  sons  should 
be  inaugurated  into  the  holy  office  of  the 
priesthood  by  being  "  washed  with  water 
at  the  door  of  the  Tabernacle  of  the  con- 
gregation "  (Ex.  xxix.  4).  It  was  incum- 
bent on  Jesus,  as  he  entered  upon  the 
work  of  priestly  sacrifice  and  intercession, 


Actual  Attitude  29 

to  comply  with  and  complete  that  law. 
In  this  experience  he  struck  the  keynote 
of  his  entire  ministry,  which  was  in  per- 
fect accord  with  the  Scriptures  every 
way.  The  divine  approval  of  this  act  was 
signified  at  his  baptism  by  the  descent  of 
the  Spirit  and  the  Voice  from  heaven, 
saying,  "  Thou  art  my  beloved  Son ;  in 
thee  I  am  well  pleased." 

He  was  a  loyal  Jew,  and  the  New 
Economy  had  not  yet  begun.  If  a  son 
of  Levi  must  be  washed  at  the  brazen 
laver  on  assuming  his  ministerial  func- 
tions, so  should  Jesus  ;  but  instead  of  the 
temple  we  have  the  deep  valley  and  the 
overarching  skies  ;  instead  of  the  laver, 
the  swift-flowing  Jordan  ;  instead  of  the 
anointing,  the  descent  of  the  dove.  Now 
this  Jesus  is  the  source  and  center  of  all 
right  precepts  and  injunctions  ;  his  heart 
is  the  throne  of  law ;  the  writings  of 
Sinai  are  the  flashings  of  his  eye ;  yet 
under  the  Law  he  bows  and  passes  into 
servitude.     Though  equal  with  God,  he 


30  The  Scriptures 

takes  upon  him  the  form  of  a  servant  and 
becomes  obedient.  The  inaugural  rite 
is  his  bounden  duty  ;  to  obey  is  better 
than  sacrifice.  "  Thus  it  becometh  me, 
as  the  '  Son  of  man  ' — that  is,  the  ideal 
and  representative  Man — to  fulfil  all 
righteousness."  If  he  thus  respected  the 
humblest  duty,  surely  the  same  is  becom- 
ing in  us. 

His  next  step  was  equally  significant. 
From  the  Jordan  he  was  "  led  up  of  the 
Spirit  into  the  wilderness  to  be  tempted 
of  the  devil."  In  the  continuous  conflict 
of  those  forty  days,  thrice  did  the  ad- 
versary assault  the  citadel  of  his  character 
and  thrice  was  he  met  and  repelled  with 
the  Sword  of  the  Spirit.  To  the  first 
temptation  which  was  addressed  to  the 
physical  infirmity  of  Jesus  he  answered, 
"  It  is  written,  '  Man  shall  not  live  by 
bread  alone,  but  by  every  word  that  pro- 
ceedeth  out  of  the  mouth  of  God. ' ' '  To 
the  second,  which  was  directed  at  his 
Messianic  consciousness  and  fortified  by 


Actual  Attitude  31 

a  cleverly  distorted  reference  to  Scripture, 
he  answered,  "  It  is  written,  '  Thou  shalt 
not  make  trial  of  the  Lord  thy  God/" 
To  the  third,  which  was  a  specious  at- 
tempt to  divert  him  from  his  purpose  of 
establishing  the  kingdom  through  his 
vicarious  death,  he  answered,  "  Get  thee 
hence,  Satan  :  for  it  is  written, '  Thou  shalt 
worship  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  him  only 
shalt  thou  serve.'  Then  the  devil  leaveth 
him  ;  and  behold,  angels  came  and  min- 
istered unto  him."  "It  is  written!" 
"  It  is  written  !  "  "  It  is  written !  " 
Where?  In  the  Scriptures.  Thus  Jesus 
not  only  vindicated  his  own  character,  as 
against  all  approach  of  evil,  but  tested 
triumphantly  the  mettle  of  his  weapon, 
"  the  sword  of  the  Spirit,  which  is  the 
word  of  God  "  (Eph.  vi.  17). 

Then  back  to  the  Jordan  he  turned 
his  steps.  The  Baptist  was  still  preach- 
ing and  baptizing  there.  On  seeing 
Jesus  he  said,  "  Behold,  the  Lamb  of 
God,   that  taketh  away   the  sin  of    the 


32  The  Scriptures 

world  !  "  Here  is  a  plain  reference  to 
the  Messiah,  in  whom  all  the  sacrificial 
rites  of  Israel  were  to  find  their  fulfill- 
ment, whose  blood  was  to  be  shed  for 
the  cleansing  from  sin.  Jesus  accepted 
the  title  without  demur,  and  then  and 
there  gathered  about  him  the  little  group 
of  disciples  who  were  to  follow  him  dur- 
ing his  earthly  ministry,  forming  the 
nucleus  of  that  great  and  ever  increasing 
multitude  who  were  destined  to  serve 
him  through  the  ages. 

The  record  states  that  John  and  An- 
drew "abode  with  him  that  day."  It 
would  appear  that  in  their  interview  with 
Jesus  he  must  have  opened  the  Scrip- 
tures unto  them  respecting  the  "  Hope 
of  Israel ;  "  for  Andrew  immediately 
sought  his  brother  Simon  saying,  "  We 
have  found  the  Messiah  (which  is,  being 
interpreted,  Christ)."  And  the  day  fol- 
lowing, Philip,  after  a  like  interview, 
sought  his  friend  Nathanael  saying,  "  We 
have  found  him,  of  whom  Moses  in  the 


Actual  Attitude  33 

law  and  the  prophets  wrote,  Jesus  of 
Nazareth,  the  son  of  Joseph."  And 
when  Nathanael  objected  increduously, 
"  Can  any  good  thing  come  out  of  Naz- 
areth ?  "  he  answered,  "  Come  and  see  ;  " 
from  which  we  infer  that  Christ,  in  all 
such  conferences  with  his  early  disciples, 
made  it  clear  that  he  was  the  one  "  whom 
kings  and  prophets  longed  to  see  and  died 
without  the  sight."  Such  a  result  could 
only  have  been  achieved  by  an  argument 
based  upon  the  Scriptures  to  which  these 
men  affixed  their  faith. 

III.  The  Judean  Ministry 

Thus  Christ  began  his  public  work  by 
opening,  expounding  and  putting  into 
practice  the  Holy  Scriptures.  And 
thenceforward  during  the  three  years  of 
his  eventful  life,  we  observe  how  inces- 
santly he  preached  the  Word. 

The  first  authoritative  act  of  his  minis- 
try was  at  the  Passover,  A.  D.  27,  when 
he  purged  the  temple  with  a  scourge  of 


34  The  Scriptures 

small  cords.  In  answer  to  the  religious 
leaders  who  indignantly  asked,  "  What 
sign  showest  thou  unto  us,  seeing  that 
thou  doest  these  things  ?  "  he  said 
"  Destroy  this  temple,  and  in  three  days 
I  will  raise  it  up."  That  this  was  in- 
tended to  be  a  reference  to  such  proph- 
ecies as  bore  upon  his  resurrection  is 
evident  from  what  follows  :  "  When 
therefore  he  was  raised  from  the  dead, 
his  disciples  remembered  that  he  spake 
this ;  and  they  believed  the  Scripture  and 
the  word  which  Jesus  had  said  "  (John  ii. 
13-22). 

The  next  incident  in  the  ministry  of 
Jesus  was  his  interview  with  Nicodemus 
(John  iii.  1-21).  This,  also,  illustrates 
his  habit  of  teaching  along  Scriptural 
lines.  The  doctrine  of  regeneration,  an- 
nounced as  a  mystery,  was  followed  by 
the  practical  and  consequential  doctrine 
of  justification  by  faith,  which  he  set 
forth  in  terms  of  kindergarten  simplicity 
by  an  object  lesson,  "  As  Moses  lifted  up 


Actual  Attitude  35 

the  serpent  in  the  wilderness,  even  so 
must  the  Son  of  man  be  lifted  up ;  that 
whosoever  believeth  may  in  him  have 
eternal  life."  Thus  his  last  appeal  was 
to  the  Scriptures.  In  the  practical  appli- 
cation of  truth,  the  great  Preacher  always 
brought  his  hearers  back  to  the  Word  of 
God. 

IV.  The  Galilean  Ministry 

The  interview  of  Jesus  with  the  wom- 
an of  Samaria  on  his  way  to  Galilee,  is 
another  instance  of  his  Scriptural  method 
(John  iv.  1-42).  The  references  to  the 
well  which  Jacob  digged,  to  the  moun- 
tain of  worship,  to  the  Judaic  source  of 
salvation  and  to  the  spiritual  nature  of 
the  Deity  are  all  biblical.  And  when, 
at  the  climacteric  point  of  his  interview, 
the  doctrine  of  the  Messiah  was  reached, 
it  was  like  the  lifting  of  a  veil.  Is  there 
anything  anywhere  in  the  teaching  of 
Jesus,  clearer,  more  positive  or  more  il- 
luminating as  to  his  relation  to  the  rites 


2,6  The  Scriptures 

and  symbols  and  prophecies  of  the  Old 
Economy,  than  his  closing  words  "  I  that 
speak  unto  thee  am  he  "  ? 

The  first  reported  sermon  of  Jesus  was 
at  Nazareth.  He  had  been  teaching  and 
working  miracles  for  some  months,  in 
Judea  and  Galilee,  when  he  returned  to 
his  native  village.  It  is  safe  to  say  that 
his  townsmen  were  on  the  qui  vive  to 
hear  him.  On  the  Sabbath  he  went  to 
the  synagogue  "as  his  custom  was."  It 
was  the  rule  to  open  the  service  with  the 
singing  of  a  Psalm.  Then  came  the 
reading  of  a  portion  of  the  Pentateuch, 
followed  by  a  lesson  from  the  Prophets.* 
It  was  customary  at  this  point  to  request 
any  distinguished  stranger,  known  as  a 
loyal  Jew,  who  chanced  to  be  present, 
to  act  as  Sheliach  Tsibbur,  or  "  Messenger 
of  the  Congregation,"  on  whom  de- 
volved the  special  duty  of  expounding  the 
lesson  of  the  day.     The  lesson  on  this 

*  See    Edersheim's  Life  and    Times  of  Jesus   the  Messiah, 
Book  III.  Chap.  X. 


Actual  Attitude  37 

particular  day  was  from  the  sixty-first  of 
Isaiah,  and  Jesus  was  invited  to  read  and 
discourse  upon  it.  The  chazzan  or 
"  minister "  approached  the  chest  and 
brought  from  it  reverently  the  scroll  of 
the  prophecy,  which,  being  carefully  un- 
wound from  its  cloth  wrappings,  was 
placed  in  the  hands  of  Jesus,  who  opened 
it  and  read  :  "  The  Spirit  of  the  Lord  is 
upon  me,  because  he  hath  anointed  me 
to  preach  good  tidings  to  the  poor ;  he 
hath  sent  me  to  proclaim  release  to  the 
captives,  and  recovering  of  sight  to  the 
blind,  to  set  at  liberty  them  that  are 
bruised,  to  proclaim  the  acceptable  year 
of  the  Lord"  (Luke  iv.  18,  19).  The 
interest  of  the  congregation  is  indicated 
in  the  words  "  And  the  eyes  of  all  in  the 
synagogue  were  fastened  on  him."  His 
discourse  is  not  given  in  full ;  but  it  is 
said  to  have  been  distinctly  expository, 
and  its  personal  bearing  on  the  great 
question  of  the  Messiahship  is  affirmed  in 
the   brief   summary :    "  To-day  hath   this 


38  The  Scriptures 

scripture  been  fulfilled  in  your  ears."  At 
the  conclusion  of  his  discourse  all  were 
agreed  in  bearing  him  witness  and  won- 
dered at  the  words  of  grace  which  pro- 
ceeded out  of  his  mouth ; "  but  they 
were  not  prepared  to  accept  his  interpre- 
tation of  Isaiah's  prophecy  as  applying  to 
himself.  "  Is  not  this  Joseph's  son  ?  " 
they  asked.  And  when  they  demanded 
"  a  sign,"  he  reminded  them,  with 
Scriptural  illustrations,  that  "  no  prophet 
is  acceptable  in  his  own  country ; " 
whereupon  they  "  were  filled  with  wrath 
and  rose  up  and  cast  him  forth  out  of 
the  city." 

The  sermon  at  Nazareth  may  serve  as 
an  example  of  the  Master's  method  in 
all  his  subsequent  preaching.  Ex  uno, 
disce  omnes.  Wherever  he  went  he 
preached  the  Word.  "And  many  hearing 
him  were  astonished,  saying,  Whence 
hath  this  man  these  things  ?  and,  What 
is  the  wisdom  that  is  given  unto  this 
man?"  (Mark.  vi.  2).     In  all  such  cases 


Actual  Attitude  39 

the  comprehensive  answer  of  Jesus  was 
"  My  teaching  is  not  mine,  but  his  that 
sent  me  "  (John  vii.  16),  which,  while  in- 
dicating his  mysterious  essential  union 
with  the  Father,  was  but  another  way  of 
expressing  his  absolute  loyalty  to  and  ac- 
cord with  the  written  Word  of  God. 

On  leaving  Nazareth  he  came  to  Caper- 
naum which  was  to  be,  thenceforth,  the 
center  of  his  work.  "  And  straightway, 
on  the  Sabbath  day,  he  entered  into  the 
synagogue  and  taught.  And  they  were 
astonished  at  his  teaching  ;  for  he  taught 
them  as  having  authority  and  not  as  the 
scribes  "  (Mark  i.  21,  22).  The  word 
here  rendered  "authority  "  is  the  Greek 
e^ovaia,  which  designates  an  inward 
source.  He  taught  not  as  the  scribes, 
who  referred  for  their  authority  to  other 
teachers,  but  as  one  who  could  say,  "  I 
am  the  Truth."  He  taught  not  like  the 
prophets,  who  introduced  their  discourses 
with  "Thus  saith  the  Lord,"  since  he 
and  the  Father  were  in  such  complete 


40  The  Scriptures 

harmony  that  their  word  was  one ;  where- 
fore he  spoke  on  this  wise :  "  Verily, 
verily,  I  say  unto  you."  How  bold  is 
this  manifesto  !  Who  is  this  that  sets  his 
ipse  dixit  against  precedent,  tradition,  the 
teaching  of  all  ancient  worthies  ?  How 
this  "  I  say  unto  you "  goes  crashing 
through  the  elaborate  fabrics  which  had 
been  set  up  by  ecclesiastical  courts  and 
councils !  Here  is  a  tone  of  authority 
which  finds  no  parallel  except  in  the 
thunders  of  Sinai.  No  other  preacher 
can  dogmatize  in  this  manner.  He  could 
speak  thus  not  only  because  of  his  singu- 
lar oneness  with  the  Father  but  because, 
also,  of  his  deep  insight  into  the  meaning 
of  the  divine  Word  and  his  absolute  loy- 
alty to  it. 

With  Capernaum  as  his  center  of  opera- 
tions he  made  a  number  of  memorable 
itineraries  among  the  villages  of  Galilee, 
"  preaching  the  good  tidings  of  the  king- 
dom of  God."  His  plan  was  to  enter 
the  synagogues  and  discourse  from  the 


Actual  Attitude  41 

Scriptures,  according  to  custom,  respect- 
ing the  great  doctrines  of  which  his  own 
Messiahship  was  chiefest  of  all. 

The  second  Passover  in  the  ministry 
of  Jesus  found  him  back  at  Jerusalem 
(John  v.  1).  On  his  arrival  he  visited  the 
porches  of  Bethesda,  where  he  healed  a 
paralytic  on  the  Sabbath.  The  religious 
leaders  at  once  accused  him  of  violating 
the  Sabbath  law ;  whereupon  he  preached 
the  wonderful  discourse  recorded  in  the 
fifth  of  John  in  which  he  showed  his 
devotion  to  the  Scriptures,  even  to  their 
last  jot  and  tittle,  while  overwhelming 
the  scribes  and  Pharisees  with  the  most 
scathing  denunciations  on  account  of  the 
sacrilegious  liberties  which  they  had  taken 
with  them.  In  these  discourses  he  not 
only  vindicates  his  own  authority  by  rea- 
son of  his  singular  relation  to  the  Father 
as  his  incarnate  Word,  but  yokes  with  it 
inseparably  the  authority  of  the  written 
Word  ;  as  when  he  says,  "  The  works 
which  the  Father  hath  given  me  to  ac- 


42  The  Scriptures 

complish,  the  very  works  that  I  do,  bear 
witness  of  me  that  the  Father  hath  sent 
me.  And  the  Father  that  sent  me,  he 
hath  borne  witness  of  me.  Ye  have 
neither  heard  his  voice  at  any  time,  nor 
seen  his  form.  And  ye  have  not  his  word 
abiding  in  you  :  for  whom  he  sent,  him 
ye  believe  not.  Ye  search  the  Scriptures ; 
because  ye  think  that  in  them  ye  have  eternal 
life ;  and  these  are  they  which  bear  witness 
of  me ;  and  ye  will  not  come  to  me,  that 
ye  may  have  life.  I  receive  not  glory 
from  men.  But  I  know  you,  that  ye  have 
not  the  love  of  God  in  yourselves.  I  am 
come  in  my  Father's  name,  and  ye  re- 
ceive me  not :  if  another  shall  come  in 
his  own  name,  him  ye  will  receive.  How 
can  ye  believe,  which  receive  glory  one  of 
another,  and  the  glory  that  cometh  from 
the  only  God  ye  seek  not  ?  Think  not 
that  I  will  accuse  you  to  the  Father : 
there  is  one  that  accuseth  you,  even 
Moses,  on  whom  ye  have  set  your  hope. 
For  if  ye  believed  Moses,  ye  would  believe 


Actual  Attitude  43 

me :  for  he  wrote  of  me.  But  if  ye  believe 
not  his  writings,  how  shall  ye  believe  my 
words?"  (John  v.  36^7). 

All  his  preaching,  during  this  brief 
visit  at  Jerusalem,  was  of  the  same  tenor. 
It  was  a  continual  tribute  to  the  truth 
and  trustworthiness  of  Scripture.  When 
the  disciples  were  taken  to  task  for  going 
through  the  tilled  fields  on  the  Sabbath 
and  rubbing  the  wheat  in  their  hands  in 
order  to  satisfy  their  hunger,  he  defended 
them  by  an  appeal  to  Scripture  ;  "  Have 
ye  not  read  in  the  law,  that  on  the  Sabbath 
day  the  priests  in  the  temple  profane  the 
Sabbath,  and  are  guiltless?  But  I  say 
unto  you,  that  one  greater  than  the 
temple  is  here.  But  if  ye  had  known 
what  this  meaneth,  I  desire  mercy,  and 
not  sacrifice,  ye  would  not  have  con- 
demned the  guiltless"  (Matt.  xii.  5-7). 

A  little  later,  while  in  attendance  at 
one  of  the  synagogues,  he  healed  a  man 
with  a  withered  hand  ;  and  when  there 
was  an  outcry  against  this  obvious  viola- 


44  The  Scriptures 

tion  of  the  rabbinical  toldoth,  his  answer 
was  an  appeal  from  the  false  interpreta- 
tion and  superfluous  citations  of  the  rab- 
bis to  the  original  design  and  true  signif- 
icance of  the  law  (Matt.  xii.  9-14). 

On  returning  to  Capernaum  he  was 
"  followed  by  a  great  multitude,  when 
they  had  heard  what  great  things  he  did." 
He  spake  to  them,  again  and  again,  in 
the  streets,  on  the  hillsides,  by  the  shore 
of  the  Lake  :  and  always  the  burden  of 
his  discourse  was  "  Return  to  the  Word 
of  God!" 

It  was  somewhere  about  this  time  that 
he  preached  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount. 
Its  Golden  Text  is,  "  Think  ?iot  that  I 
came  to  destroy  the  law,  or  the  prophets :  I 
came  not  to  destroy,  but  to  fulfil.  For  verily 
I  say  unto  you,  Till  heaven  and  earth  pass 
away,  one  jot  or  one  tittle  shall  in  no  wise 
pass  from  the  law,  till  all  things  be  accom- 
plished. Whosoever  therefore  shall  break  one 
of  these  least  commandments,  and  shall  teach 
men  so,  shall  be  called  least  in  the  kingdom 


Actual  Attitude  45 

of  heaven  :  but  whosoever  shall  do  and  teach 
them,  he  shall  be  called  great  in  the  king- 
dom of  heaven  "  (Matt.  v.  17  -  19).  In  the 
whole  of  this  wonderful  discourse  he 
shows  not  only  his  perfect  acquiescence 
in  and  devotion  to  the  teachings  of  Holy 
Writ  but  his  divine  insight  into  its  signif- 
icance. He  ruthlessly  exposes  the  errors 
in  the  Biblical  expositions  and  interpre- 
tations of  the  scribes  and  elders — their 
toldoth,  their  eisegesis,  their  "  tradi- 
tions " — and  insists  imperatively  on  get- 
ting back  to  the  original  and  down  into 
the  uttermost  meaning  of  things.  It  is 
not  the  voice  of  the  destroyer  but  of  the 
restorer  that  we  hear  in  his  "  Ye  have 
heard — but  I  say  unto  you !  " 

One  reason  why  "  the  common  people 
heard  him  gladly "  was  because  his 
preaching  was  so  distinctly  Scriptural. 
They  believed  in  the  Scriptures  ;  if  ever 
there  was  a  people  against  whom  the 
charge  of  bibliolatry  could  justly  be  made 
it  was  these  Jews.     When  they  went  to 


46  The  Scriptures 

the  synagogue  it  was  with  the  desire  and 
expectation  of  hearing  a  doctrinal  or 
ethical  discourse  on  that  particular  por- 
tion of  the  Scripture  which  was  desig- 
nated as  "  the  lesson  of  the  day."  An 
expression  of  personal  opinion  on  the 
part  of  the  preacher  was  of  little  interest 
to  them  ;  as  litde,  indeed,  as  it  is  to  the 
people  of  these  days.  Who  cares,  at  the 
back  and  bottom  of  the  matter,  what  this 
or  that  Doctor  of  Divinity  thinks  about 
the  great  problems  of  eternity  ?  His 
breath  is  in  his  nostrils ;  wherefore  his 
experimental  pilgrimages  and  peregrina- 
tions in  Terra  Incognita  are  no  more  im- 
portant than  those  of  any  other  man. 
One  can  guess  as  well  as  another  ;  and 
every  one  can  conjure  up  enough  "  ifs  " 
and  "  perhapses "  of  his  own  without 
going  to  church  for  them.  The  people 
go  to  church  to  hear  a  preacher  set 
forth  plainly  not  what  he  supposes  but 
what  God  says.  They  want  the  clear 
light   of   a    Thus  saith   the  Lord  on  the 


Actual  Attitude  47 

problems  along  the  heavenward  way. 
If  the  man  in  the  pulpit  has  nothing 
better  to  offer  than  hypotheses,  based  on 
no  better  authority  than  personal  opin- 
ion, they  may  lend  an  ear  for  a  while  to 
his  fine  phrases  but  sooner  or  later  they 
will  quit  him  for  another  who  can  lean 
on  Scripture  and  say  Yea  and  Amen. 
Jesus  preached  in  this  positive  manner. 
To  his  personal  authority  as  the  divine 
Son — an  authority  which  he  shared  with 
no  other  preacher  whatsoever — he  added 
a  constant  appeal  to  the  ultimate  and  con- 
clusive authority  of  the  Scriptures  :  he 
"preached  the  Word"  (Mark  ii.  1,  2, 
et  al.).  In  his  miracles  of  healing  he  con- 
sistently honored  it  ;  as  when  he  said  to 
the  leper  at  Chorazin,  "  Go  shew  thy- 
self to  the  priest,  and  offer  for  thy  cleans- 
ing, according  as  Moses  commanded,  for  a 
testimony  unto  them"  (Luke  v.  14). 

It  was  about  this  time  that  John  the 
Baptist,  a  prisoner  in  the  castle  of 
Machaerus,  sent  messengers  to  him  ask- 


48  The  Scriptures 

ing,  "  Art  thou  he  that  should  come  or 
look  we  for  another?"  The  question 
having  been  answered  in  a  most  satisfac- 
tory and  conclusive  manner,  he  called 
the  attention  of  the  multitude  to  John 
himself  as  set  forth  in  ancient  prophecy  ; 
and  his  words  are  in  notable  contrast  with 
certain  views  of  prophecy  which  are  ad- 
vanced in  our  time.  Hear  him  ;  "  What 
went  ye  out  into  the  wilderness  to  be- 
hold ?  a  reed  shaken  with  the  wind  ? 
But  what  went  ye  out  to  see  ?  a  man 
clothed  in  soft  raiment  ?  Behold,  they 
that  wear  soft  raiment  are  in  kings' 
houses.  But  wherefore  went  ye  out  ?  to 
see  a  prophet  ?  Yea,  I  say  unto  you, 
and  much  more  than  a  prophet.  This  is 
he,  of  whom  it  is  written,  Behold,  I  send 
my  messenger  before  thy  face,  who  shall 
prepare  thy  way  before  thee.  Verily  I 
say  unto  you,  Among  them  that  are  born 
of  women  there  hath  not  arisen  a  greater 
than  John  the  Baptist :  yet,  he  that  is 
but  little  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is 


Actual  Attitude  49 

greater  than  he.  And  from  the  days  of 
John  the  Baptist  until  now  the  kingdom 
of  heaven  suffereth  violence,  and  men  of 
violence  take  it  by  force.  For  all  the 
prophets  and  the  law  prophesied  until  John. 
And  if  ye  are  willing  to  receive  it,  this  is 
Elijah  that  is  to  come.  He  that  hath  ears 
to  hear,  let  him  hear  "  (Matt.  xi.  7-15). 

His  credentials,  as  the  divine  Son, 
being  called  in  question  by  the  scribes 
and  Pharisees,  who  clamored  for  a  sign, 
he  answered  them  by  falling  back  on  a 
notable  sign  given  in  the  Scriptures 
(Matt.  xii.  38-40)  and  put  their  unbelief 
to  shame  on  this  wise,  "  The  queen  of 
the  south  shall  rise  up  in  the  judgment 
with  this  generation,  and  shall  condemn 
it ;  for  she  came  from  the  ends  of  the 
earth  to  hear  the  wisdom  of  Solomon  ; 
and,  behold,  a  greater  than  Solomon  is 
here  "  (Matt.  xii.  42). 

A  woman  who  chanced  to  be  among 
his  hearers  was  so  carried  away  with 
enthusiasm  that  she  cried,   "  Blessed    is 

D 


50  The  Scriptures 

the  womb  that  bare  thee  and  the  breasts 
which  thou  didst  suck  !  "  to  which  he 
answered,  "Yea,  rather,  blessed  are  they 
that  hear  the  word  of  God,  and  keep  it ' ' 
(Luke  xi.  27-28).  Was  greater  tribute 
than  this  ever  paid  to  the  Word  of  God  ? 

At  this  point  his  teaching  was  largely 
in  parables,  and  this  method  having  been 
challenged  he  defended  it  by  a  reference 
to  Scripture,  showing  that  he  was  pursu- 
ing the  divinely  appointed  path  of  in- 
struction :  "Unto  them  is  fulfilled  the  prophecy 
of  Isaiah,  which  saith,  By  hearing  ye  shall 
hear,  and  shall  in  no  wise  understand  ; 
and  seeing  ye  shall  see,  and  shall  in  no 
wise  perceive :  for  this  people's  heart  is 
waxed  gross,  and  their  ears  are  dull  of 
hearing,  and  their  eyes  they  have  closed; 
lest  haply  they  should  perceive  with  their 
eyes,  and  hear  with  their  ears,  and  un- 
derstand with  their  heart,  and  should 
turn  again,  and  I  should  heal  them  ' 
(Matt.  xiii.  14,  15). 

And  when  his  disciples  asked,  in  par- 


Actual  Attitude  51 

ticular,  for  an  interpretation  of  the  par- 
able of  "  the  sower  who  soweth  the  Word," 
he  said,  "  He  that  soweth  the  good  seed 
is  the  Son  of  man  "  (Matt.  xiii.  37). 

In  the  last  of  the  series  of  parables,  ut- 
tered on  this  occasion,  he  laid  down  a 
comprehensive  rule  of  homiletics  for  all 
preachers  and  for  all  time  ;  "  Have  ye 
understood  all  these  things  ?  They  say 
unto  him,  Yea.  And  he  said  unto  them, 
Therefore  every  scribe  who  hath  been 
made  a  disciple  to  the  kingdom  of  heaven 
is  like  unto  a  man  that  is  a  householder, 
who  bringeth  forth  out  of  his  treasure 
things  new  and  old  "  (Matt.  xiii.  51,  52). 
The  preacher  is  here  likened  to  an 
oriental  host  who  receives  a  stranger  into 
his  home.  Desirous  of  entertaining  him 
he  brings  forth  his  wealth  and  spreads  it 
before  him.  There  were  no  banks  or 
other  places  of  safe  deposit  in  those  days. 
Treasure  was  buried  in  the  ground  or 
kept  in  a  recess  in  the  wall.  The  house- 
holder here  goes  to  his  treasury  and  brings 


52  The  Scriptures 

out  things  new  and  old  :  antique  coins  ; 
necklaces  worn  by  princes  of  long  ago  ; 
golden  shields  bearing  the  dint  of  old- 
time  battles  ;  precious  stones  plucked 
from  the  crowns  of  captive  kings  ;  the 
loot  of  the  campaigns  of  ages.  All  these 
are  spread  before  the  eyes  of  his  wonder- 
ing guest.  Now,  says  Jesus,  the  scribe 
is  the  custodian  of  God's  treasury.  The 
preacher  is  a  "  scribe."  It  is  his  special 
function  to  expound  the  divine  Word. 
The  key  is  at  his  girdle.  His  business 
is  to  bring  forth  the  wealth  of  Scripture, 
new  truths  and  old  truths,  to  dazzle  the 
eyes. 

The  Pharisees  having  brought  an  ac- 
cusation against  Jesus,  that  he  was  "the 
friend  of  sinners  "  and  that  he  "ate  and 
drank  with  sinners,"  he  made  his  defense 
on  Scriptural  grounds  ;  "  Go  and  learn," 
he  said,  "  what  that  meaneth,  I  will  have 
mercy  and  not  sacrifice"  (Matt.  ix.  13  cf. 
Hosea  vi.  6).  In  this  saying  he  intimated 
his  reliance  on  Scripture,  in  its  deep  spirit- 


Actual  Attitude  53 

ual  significance,  as  the  final  arbiter  in  all 
questions  of  right  and  wrong. 

In  his  discourse  at  Capernaum,  on  the 
day  following  the  miracle  of  the  loaves, 
his  assertion  that  he  was  himself  the  living 
bread  of  which  if  a  man  ate  he  should 
hunger  no  more,  was  openly  resented  by 
the  Pharisees  ;  to  whom  he  replied,  "  // 
is  written  in  the  prophets,  *  And  they  shall 
be  all  taught  of  God.'  Every  man  that 
hath  heard  and  hath  learned  of  the  Father, 
cometh  unto  me"  (John  vi.  45,  cf.  Micah 
iv.  2  et  al.).  This  is  no  vague  reference 
to  an  all-pervasive  voice  in  nature,  nor 
yet  to  the  specific  word  of  any  inspired 
writer,  but  rather  to  the  whole  tenor  of 
the  Scriptures  as  pointing  to  Christ.  And 
he  goes  on  to  explain  by  an  allusion  to 
the  manna  in  the  wilderness  :  "I  am  the 
bread  of  life.  Your  fathers  ate  the  manna 
in  the  wilderness,  and  they  died.  This 
is  the  bread  which  cometh  down  out  of 
heaven,  that  a  man  may  eat  thereof,  and 
not  die.     I  am  the  living  bread  which 


54  The  Scriptures 

came  down  out  of  heaven  :  if  any  man 
eat  of  this  bread,  he  shall  live  forever : 
yea  and  the  bread  which  I  will  give  is  my 
flesh,  for  the  life  of  the  world  "  (John  vi. 
47-51).  Thus,  over  and  over  again,  he 
shows  himself  not  merely  a  preacher  of 
the  Word  but  a  consistent  and  unwavering 
believer  in  it. 

A  complaint  being  made  against  the 
disciples  for  "  transgressing  the  traditions 
of  the  elders  "  by  eating  without  having 
previously  washed  their  hands,  he  an- 
swered "  Why  do  ye  also  transgress  the 
commandment  of  God  by  your  tradition  ? ' ' 
(Matt.  xv.  2,  3).  He  thus  tore  up  the 
very  foundations  of  their  reasoning  by 
announcing  that  no  ecclesiastical  prescript 
or  human  requirement  whatsoever  is  for 
a  moment  to  be  compared  with  the  Scrip- 
tures in  binding  force.  They  go  for 
naught  when  they  are  at  variance  with 
the  divine  law.  And,  having  laid  down 
this  fact,  as  a  general  proposition,  the 
Master  went  on  to  emphasize  it :   "  For 


Actual  Attitude  55 

God  said,  Honor  thy  father  and  thy 
mother :  and,  He  that  speaketh  evil  of 
father  or  mother,  let  him  die  the  death. 
But  ye  say,  Whosoever  shall  say  to  his 
father  or  his  mother,  That  wherewith 
thou  mightest  have  been  profited  by  me 
is  given  to  God  ;  he  shall  not  honor  his 
father.  And  ye  have  made  void  the  word 
of  God  because  of  your  tradition.  Ye 
hypocrites,  well  did  Isaiah  prophesy  of  you 
saying,  This  people  honoreth  me  with 
their  lips  ;  but  their  heart  is  far  from  me. 
But  in  vain  do  they  worship  me,  teaching 
as  their  doctrines  the  precepts  of  men  " 
(Matt.  xv.  4-9).  Could  anything  be 
stronger  than  this  "  God  said — but  ye 
say  ?  "  Is  it  not  obvious  that  to  the  mind 
of  Jesus  the  Word  was  ultimate  and 
there  was  no  going  beyond  or  getting 
behind  it  ? 

V.  The  Perean  Ministry 

As  Jesus  purposed  to  be  present  at  the 
celebration  of  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles, 


56  The  Scriptures 

he  set  out  with  his  disciples  for  the  Holy 
City.  This  was  that  historic  journey  of 
which  it  is  written,  "  He  set  his  face 
steadfastly  to  go."  The  shadow  of  the 
cross  was  over  him,  but  he  swerved  not 
an  inch  from  his  appointed  path.  Up 
to  this  time  he  had  not  clearly  informed 
his  disciples  as  to  the  fate  awaiting  him  ; 
but  now,  as  they  journeyed,  "  he  began 
to  teach  them  that  the  Son  of  man  must 
suffer  many  things  and  be  rejected  of  the 
elders  and  chief  priests  and  be  killed  and, 
after  three  days,  rise  again  "  (Mark  viii. 
31).  How  was  this  "  teaching"  done? 
If  anything  is  to  be  inferred  from  his  in- 
variable custom,  it  was  by  "  opening  unto 
them  the  Scriptures."  It  is  easy  to  im- 
agine him,  who  from  his  childhood  had 
dwelt  in  the  atmosphere  of  revelation, 
reminding  them  not  only  of  the  many, 
many  prophecies,  but  of  the  deep  signifi- 
cance of  all  the  sacrificial  rites  and  sym- 
bols of  the  Old  Economy,  and  showing 
how  they  pointed  to  him  as  the  Lamb  of 


Actual  Attitude  57 

God.  Indeed  it  is  difficult  to  imagine 
how  the  truth  which  he  desired  to  con- 
vey could  have  been  impressed  upon 
them  in  any  other  way.  And  when 
Peter,  revolting  at  the  thought  of  the 
Master's  death,  exclaimed  "  Be  it  far  from 
thee  !  Lord  this  shall  not  be  unto  thee  !  " 
he  rebuked  him  for  offering  a  satanic 
suggestion  against  the  vicarious  sacrifice, 
saying,  "  Get  thee  behind  me,  Satan  ;  for 
thou  mindest  not  the  things  of  God  but 
the  things  of  men."  If  this  means  any- 
thing, it  indicates  that  Jesus,  in  foretell- 
ing his  death,  was  following  the  red  path 
of  divine  prophecy  leading  all  through 
Scripture  from  the  protevangel  to  the 
cross.  It  was  not  the  path  of  human 
wisdom  but  the  one  which,  in  the  Scrip- 
tures, was  divinely  marked  out  for  him. 

It  was  in  the  course  of  this  journey, 
probably,  that  the  transfiguration  oc- 
curred. Six  days  after  the  departure 
from  Capernaum  Jesus  turned  aside,  with 
three  of  his  disciples,  and  climbed  the 


58  The  Scriptures 

mountain  where  he  was  transfigured 
before  them.  In  this  scene  he  is 
significantly  presented  in  converse  with 
Moses  and  Elijah,  representatives  of 
the  law  and  the  prophets.  Thus  the 
written  and  the  incarnate  Word  stood 
face  to  face.  Moses,  looking  backward 
over  the  lapse  of  fifteen  hundred  years, 
knew  now  the  real  significance  of  all 
that  he  had  been  divinely  moved  to  write 
in  the  ceremonial  law  ;  and  Elijah,  also 
looking  back,  through  a  vista  of  nine 
hundred  years,  perceived  the  fulfillment 
of  prophecy  in  Christ.  And  to  empha- 
size this  fulfillment  of  the  written  Word 
in  its  living  complement,  a  Voice  from 
heaven  was  heard,  saying,  "This  is  my 
beloved  Son,  hear  ye  him  !  " 

It  is  further  recorded  that,  as  Christ 
and  the  three  disciples  were  coming 
down  out  of  the  mountain,  they  asked 
him,  "  Why  say  the  scribes  that  Elijah 
must  first  come  ?"  His  answer  is  in  di- 
rect contravention    of   those  who  allow 


Actual  Attitude  59 

that  any  Scripture  can  come  to  naught ; 
"  And  he  said  unto  them,  Elijah  indeed 
cometh  first,  and  restoreth  all  things : 
and  how  is  it  written  of  the  Son  of  man, 
that  he  should  suffer  many  things  and  be 
set  at  nought  ?  But  I  say  unto  you,  that 
Elijah  is  come,  and  they  have  also  done 
unto  him  whatsoever  they  would,  even  as 
it  is  written"  (Mark  ix.  12,  13  ;  cf.  Matt. 
xvii.  10-13).  The  word  "  verily  "  is  used 
in  the  teaching  of  Jesus  to  emphasize 
only  the  most  important  truths.  And  in 
showing  these  disciples  "how  it  is  writ- 
ten it  is  evident  that  again  he  "  opened 
unto  them  the  Scriptures "  with  refer- 
ence to  his  sufferings  as  the  Son  of  man. 
Thus  the  Book  is  ever  open  before  him. 
On  reaching  Jerusalem  the  Master 
went  up  to  the  temple  and  began  to  teach. 
So  wonderful  were  his  words  that  "  the 
Jews  marvelled,  saying,  How  knoweth  this 
man  letters,  having  never  learned  ? ' '  Let 
it  be  remembered  that  the  education  of 
the  Jews  from  childhood  up  was  in  the 


60  The  Scriptures 

Bible  and  in  such  literature  only  as  bore 
more  or  less  directly  upon  it.  So  that 
when  they  spoke  of  Christ's  acquaintance 
with  "  letters"  they  referred  to  his  fa- 
miliarity with  the  Scriptures  and  their 
interpretation.  The  profound  grasp  of 
the  Scriptures  exhibited  by  a  peasant,  a 
mere  carpenter,  this  was  what  amazed 
them.  His  answer  was,  "  My  teaching  is 
not  mine  but  his  that  sent  me  "  (John  vii. 
15—18)  and,  that  his  reference  was  dis- 
tinctly to  the  teaching  of  the  Scriptures 
is  clear  from  what  follows :  "  Did  not 
Moses  give  you  the  law ;  and  yet  none  of 
you  keepeth  it ;  "  and  he  proceeded  to 
give  a  specific  illustration  of  their  depart- 
ure from  the  clear  meaning  of  the  Word 
(John  vii.  19-24). 

On  the  last  day  of  the  feast,  during 
the  imposing  ceremonies  known  as  "  the 
Effusion  of  Waters,"  Jesus  stood  and 
cried,  "  If  any  man  thirst,  let  him  come 
unto  me  and  drink.  He  that  believeth 
on  me,  as  the  Scripture  hath  said,   from 


Actual  Attitude  61 

within  him  shall  flow  rivers  of  living 
water  "  (John  vii.  37,  38).  Here  again 
we  note  the  ever  recurring,  "  It  is  writ- 
ten "  which  characterized  the  preaching 
of  Christ.  He  did  not  take  a  text  of 
Scripture  as  the  headline  of  his  discourse  ; 
but  his  discourse  was  shot  through  and 
through  with  the  Word  of  God. 

One  morning,  a  little  later,  he  went 
early  into  the  Temple  and  taught  the 
people  who  came  thronging  about  him. 
He  was  interrupted  presendy  by  a  mob, 
led  by  scribes  and  Pharisees,  who,  drag- 
ging a  woman  taken  in  adultery  threw 
her  on  the  pavement  before  him,  saying, 
"  Moses  in  the  law  commanded  that  such 
should  be  stoned  ;  but  what  sayest  thou  ? " 
They  intimated  that  he  had  been  giving 
them  a  surfeit  of  Moses'  law ;  let  him 
take  his  own  medicine.  There  was  no 
shrinking  on  his  part ;  but  what  scorn ! 
What  unutterable  scorn  in  his  silence ! 
"  He  stooped  and  wrote  upon  the 
ground."     Perhaps  he  merely  read  what 


62  The  Scriptures 

he  had  written  there,  when,  looking  on 
the  woman's  accusers,  he  said  "  Let  him 
that  is  without  sin  cast  the  first  stone  at 
her. "  Here  was  not  a  word,  not  a  syllable, 
against  the  law,  such  as  they  had  ex- 
pected, but  the  broadest,  deepest,  truest 
interpretation  of  it  (John  viii.  2-11). 

This  incident  led  to  a  discourse  on  the 
relation  of  Jesus  to  the  Father,  and  on 
the  testimony  of  the  Father  to  his  Son- 
ship  :  "  TV  is  written  in  your  law  that  the 
testimony  of  two  witnesses  is  true.  I  am 
one  that  bear  witness  of  myself  ;  and  the 
Father  that  sent  me  beareth  witness  of 
me."  The  reference  here  is  to  the  Scrip- 
tures ;  it  cannot  be  otherwise.  And  the 
whole  discourse  on  t'  is  occasion,  as  re- 
corded in  John  viii.  is  a  far-reaching  state- 
ment of  the  absolute  accord  of  Jesus  with 
the  written  Word,  putting  to  confusion 
those  who  called  themselves  children 
of  Abraham  while  refusing  to  obey 
Abraham's  God  and  driving  them  to  a 
very   frenzy   of   hatred   by   his   sublime 


Actual  Attitude  63 

peroration  "  Before  Abraham  was,  I 
am  ! 

At  the  Feast  of  Dedication  (Dec.  20), 
Jesus  having  made  several  itineraries  in 
Perea  and  elsewhere,  was  again  present 
in  Jerusalem.  As  he  was  teaching  in 
Solomon's  Porch  the  Jews  renewed 
their  attack  on  his  Messianic  credentials; 
"Tell  us  plainly,"  they  said,  "if  thou  be 
the  Christ."  He  told  them  plainly  ;  and 
they  charged  him  with  blasphemy,  "be- 
cause thou,  being  a  man,  makest  thyself 
God."  He  again  defended  himself  by 
falling  back  on  the  Scriptures,  "Is  it  not 
written  in  your  law,  I  said,  Ye  are  gods  ? 
If  he  called  them  gods,  unto  whom  the 
word  of  God  came  {and  the  Scripture  can- 
not be  broken),  say  ye  of  him,  whom  the 
Father  sanctified  and  sent  into  the  world, 
Thou  blasphemest ;  because  I  said,  I  am 
the  Son  of  God  ?  "  (John  x.  34-36). 

Being  driven  out  of  Jerusalem  again 
by  the  malignity  of  his  enemies,  he 
took   refuge   in  a  city  called   Ephraim ; 


64  The  Scriptures 

where  he  remained  until  the  cross 
beckoned  him.  The  time  of  the  fourth 
Passover  was  drawing  near  when  he  set 
out  for  the  Holy  City.  It  is  a  singular 
fact,  that  in  sending  out  his  disciples  to 
preach  in  the  villages  along  the  way, 
not  a  word  occurs  in  their  commission 
to  indicate  specifically  what  they  were 
to  preach.  It  is  left  for  us  to  assume 
that  they  were  to  follow  the  example 
of  their  Leader  in  pointing  out  his 
Messianic  office  and  work,  as  a  fulfill- 
ment of  the  law  and  the  prophets ;  that 
is,  they  were  to  preach  the  written  Word 
as  setting  forth  the  incarnate  Word. 
And  that  this  was  their  mode  of  proce- 
dure seems  clear  from  the  words  of  Jesus 
on  their  return,  "  Blessed  are  the  eyes 
which  see  the  things  which  ye  see ;  for 
I  say  unto  you,  that  many  prophets  and 
kings  desired  to  see  the  things  which  ye 
see,  and  saw  them  not ;  and  to  hear  the 
things  which  ye  hear,  and  heard  them 
not  "     (Luke  x.  23,  24). 


Actual  Attitude  65 

It  was  somewhere  on  this  journey  that 
a  certain  lawyer  (i.  e.  theologian)  stood 
up  and  tested  him  saying,  "  Master,  what 
shall  I  do  to  inherit  eternal  life  ?  Now 
mark  his  answer,  "  What  is  written  in  the 
Law  ?  How  readest  thou  ?  "  (Luke  x. 
25-28).  Would  that  all  his  ministers  were 
as  faithful  as  Christ  himself  in  referring 
sinners,  learned  or  otherwise,  to  the 
Scriptures  as  the  oracles  of  life  ! 

In  his  preaching  at  this  time  he  was 
most  unsparing  in  his  denunciation  of  the 
scribes  or  "lawyers."  There  was  good 
and  sufficient  reason  for  this  in  their  in- 
efficiency and  malfeasance  as  interpreters 
of  the  divine  law.  This  was  their  special 
and  particular  function  ;  to  open  the 
Scriptures  to  the  people.  They  were  the 
"Biblical  experts"  of  that  time.  But 
how  wretchedly  they  botched  their 
work !  On  the  one  hand  they  empha- 
sized the  minor  requirements  of  Scripture 
to  the  neglect  of  truth  and  righteous- 
ness ;  and  on  the  other  they  added  super- 


66  TJic  Scriptures 

erogatory  precepts  of  their  own  ;  the  re- 
sult being  that  their  version  of  the 
Scriptures  bore  about  the  same  relation 
to  the  original  as  the  "  Polychrome 
Bible  "  does  in  these  days.  Wherefore 
the  Lord  denounced  them,  saying  "  Woe 
unto  you,  lawyers  (that  is,  instructors  in 
Biblical  literature,)  for  ye  have  taken  away 
the  key  of  knowledge  !  Ye  entered  not  in 
yourselves,  and  them  that  were  entering 
in  ye  hindered  "  (Luke  xi.  45,  52).  The 
"  key  of  knowledge"  here  referred  to 
was  the  doctrine  of  Messiah,  his  incarna- 
tion, atonement  and  triumph  over  death 
in  behalf  of  all  believers ;  a  doctrine 
which  opens  the  true  meaning  of  the 
Scriptures,  and  without  which  they  are 
as  meaningless  as  an  indecipherable 
hieroglyph.  This  doctrine  was  rejected 
by  those  who  were  specially  appointed 
to  use  it  for  the  enlightening  of  the 
people,  wherefore  the  Lord's  "  Woe 
unto  you."  The  close  application  of 
his  words  on  this  occasion  to  certain  par- 


Actual  Attitude  67 

ticipants  in  current  Biblical  controversy 
affords  a  striking  illustration  of  the  ad- 
justment of  Christ's  teaching  to  the  prog- 
ress of  the  centuries  and  to  the  needs 
of  every  age. 

The  religious  leaders,  particularly  the 
Pharisees  or  orthodox  party,  were  so  in- 
furiated by  his  teaching  and  so  carried 
away  with  envy  by  reason  of  his  hold 
upon  the  people  *  that  they  openly  ridi- 
culed him  ;  whereupon  he  rebuked  them 
on  this  wise,  "  Ye  are  they  that  justify 
yourselves  in  the  sight  of  men  ;  but  God 
knoweth  your  hearts  :  for  that  which  is 
exalted  among  men  is  an  abomination 
in  the  sight  of  God  "  (Luke  xvi.  15). 
And  continuing  he  said,  "  The  law  and 
the  prophets  (that  is,  the  Scriptures)  were 
until  John ;  from  that  time  the  gospel 
of  the  kingdom  of  God  is  preached,  and 
every  man  entereth  violently  into  it.  But 
/'/  is  easier  for  heaven  and  earth  to  pass  away, 

*  Being  "covetous"  (<pi\dpyvpot)  they  "derided him  "  (Luke 
xvi.  14). 


68  The  Scriptures 

than  for  one  tittle  of  the  law  to  fall " 
(Luke  xvi.  16,  17).  "  By  the  law  and  the 
prophets "  he  meant  the  Scriptures  (as 
we  shall  see  further  on)  and  by  saying 
that  they  "were  until  John  "  he  could 
only  mean  that  they  had  been  divinely 
intended  as  a  trustworthy  guide  in  all 
things  looking  forward  and  leading  up 
to  the  gospel  dispensation.  In  so  far  as 
they  were  prophetic  or  symbolical  they 
were  proven  true  by  their  perfect  fulfill- 
ment in  that  dispensation  as  "  the  king- 
dom of  God." 

Then  followed  the  parable  of  Dives 
and  Lazarus,  in  which  the  Master  laid  a 
still  clearer  and  deeper  emphasis  on  the 
importance  and  saving  power  of  the 
Scriptures.  For  when  Dives  requested, 
in  behalf  of  his  five  brethren,  that  one 
might  be  sent  from  the  world  of  spirits 
to  warn  them  of  the  terrible  doom  of  a 
sinful  life,  the  answer  was  "If  they  hear 
not  Moses  and  the  prophets,  neither  will 
they  be  persuaded  though  one  rose  from 


Actual  Attitude  69 

the  dead"  (Luke  xvi.  31).  The  only 
possible  meaning  of  these  words  is  that 
Moses  and  the  prophets  (that  is,  the 
Scriptures,  as  we  shall  see  presently,) 
were  a  sufficient  and  trustworthy  guide 
to  salvation,  and  that  God,  in  giving  the 
Scriptures,  had  done  the  utmost  possible 
to  lead  men  to  eternal  life. 

The  attempt  of  the  Pharisees  to  en- 
tangle him  in  the  question  of  divorce  led 
to  a  further  statement  of  his  unswerving 
loyalty  to  the  written  Word.  "  Is  it  law- 
ful," they  asked,  "  for  a  man  to  put  away 
his  wife  for  every  cause  ? "  to  which  he 
replied,  "  W/iat  did  Moses  command 
you  ?  "  And  when  they  betook  them- 
selves evasively  to  a  temporary  provision 
made  for  Israel  "  because  of  the  hardness 
of  their  hearts  " — an  exception  which 
merely  served  to  confirm  the  rule — he 
drove  them  relentlessly  back  to  the  sanc- 
tity of  the  marriage  law,  "  Have  ye  not 
read,  that  he  who  made  them  from  the 
beginning  made  them  male  and  female, 


70  The  Scriptures 

and  said,  For  this  cause  shall  a  man  leave 
his  father  and  mother,  and  shall  cleave 
to  his  wife ;  and  the  two  shall  become 
one  flesh  ?  So  that  they  are  no  more  two, 
but  one  flesh.  What  therefore  God  hath 
joined  together,  let  not  man  put  asunder  " 
(Matt.  xix.  4-6).  In  this,  as  in  all  his 
other  teaching,  he  showed  his  faith  in 
Scripture  as  the  infallible  rule  of  faith 
and  practice  for  all  people,  under  all  cir- 
cumstances and  in  every  age. 

As  he  journeyed  among  the  villages  a 
certain  ruler  came  running  and  prostrated 
himself  before  him,  asking  "  Good  Mas- 
ter, what  shall  I  do  that  I  may  inherit 
eternal  life?"  His  answer,  "keep  the 
commandments"  shows  again,  his  constant 
and  consistent  advocacy  of  the  Scriptures. 
In  his  further  counsel  to  this  ruler  he  de- 
velops the  fact,  brought  out  afterwards 
in  doctrinal  form  by  Paul,  that  "  the  law 
is  a  schoolmaster  to  lead  us  to  Christ ;  " 
and,  inferentially,  that  a  man  who  rejects 
the  authority  of  the  law  as  contained  in  the 


Actual  Attitude  71 

Old  Testament  is  not  likely  to  be  greatly 
helped  by  the  gospel  in  his  search  for 
eternal  life. 

VI.  Passion  Week 

On  Palm  Sunday,  April  2,  30  A.  D., 
the  Lord  returned  to  Jerusalem  from 
his  last  itinerary,  fulfilling  in  every  inci- 
dent of  his  triumphal  entry  the  prophecies 
which  had  been  uttered  concerning  him. 
On  presenting  himself  in  the  temple, 
where  the  lingering  echoes  of  the  popular 
adulations  followed  him,  he  was  rebuked 
by  the  high  priests  and  scribes  for  per- 
mitting the  Hosannas  of  the  children. 
Again  he  referred  them  to  the  Scrip- 
tures, saying  "  Yea,  did  ye  never  read, 
Out  of  the  mouth  of  babes  and  sucklings 
thou  hast  perfected  praise?"  (Matt. 
xxi.  16). 

And  when  certain  Greeks  came  say- 
ing, "We  would  see  Jesus,"  he,  seeing 
in  them  the  vanguard  of  the  mighty 
army  of  the  redeemed  who  were  to  be 


72  The  Scriptures 

given  him  as  the  fruit  of  the  travail  of 
his  soul,  spoke  of  his  vicarious  death, 
concluding  "  And  I,  if  I  be  lifted  up 
from  the  earth,  will  draw  all  men  unto 
myself."  This  provoked  the  reply, 
"  We  have  heard  out  of  the  law  that  the 
Christ  abideth  forever  ;  and  how  sayest 
thou, '  The  Son  of  man  must  be  lifted  up  ? ' 
Who  is  this  Son  of  man  ?  "  To  which 
he  answered,  "  Yet  a  little  while  is  the 
light  among  you.  Walk  while  ye  have 
the  light,  that  darkness  overtake  you 
not ;  and  he  that  walketh  in  the  darkness 
knoweth  not  whither  he  goeth.  While 
ye  have  the  light,  believe  on  the  light, 
that  ye  may  become  sons  of  light " 
(Johnxii.  35,  36).  We  are  thus  informed 
(a)  that  "  Son  of  man  "  was  regarded  as 
a  Messianic  title,  (b)  that  Jesus  appropri- 
ated this  title  to  himself,  (c)  that  being 
"  lifted  up  "  was  understood  as  referring 
to  death  by  crucifixion,  (d)  that  Christ 
by  his  vicarious  death  on  the  cross  was 
to  become  the  Saviour  of  all  who  should 


Actual  Attitude  73 

be  drawn  to  believe  in  him,  and  (e)  that 
all  this  is  taught  in  the  Old  Testament. 
For  Jesus  and  his  controversial  opponents 
were  alike,  on  this  occasion,  speaking 
within  the  circumscription  of  the  law. 

In  the  second  cleansing  of  the  temple, 
which  occurred  at  this  time,  our  Lord 
justified  his  apparently  high-handed  pro- 
cedure by  saying  "  It  is  written,  My 
house  shall  be  called  a  house  of  prayer : 
but  ye  make  it  a  den  of  robbers  "  (Matt. 
xxi.  13). 

In  further  defense  of  his  Messianic 
authority  he  uttered  the  parable  of  the 
Wicked  Husbandmen  who  rejected  the 
messengers  sent  them  by  the  owner  of 
the  vineyard  and,  finally,  slew  his  beloved 
son.  The  application  was  perfectly 
clear ;  and  it  was  clinched  with  the 
words,  "  Did  ye  never  read  in  the  Scriptures, 
The  stone  which  the  builders  rejected, 
the  same  was  made  the  head  of  the 
corner ;  this  was  from  the  Lord,  and  it  is 
marvelous  in  our  eyes  ?  "    (Matt.  xxi.  42). 


74  The  Scriptures 

The  religious  leaders,  infuriated  by 
this  sort  of  teaching  and  all  the  more  be- 
cause it  was  impregnably  fortified  by 
their  own  Scriptures,  endeavored  to  en- 
snare him  in  his  words.  One  of  the 
Sadducees  propounded  the  thumb-worn 
question  of  the  sevenfold  widow  : 
"  Teacher,  Moses  wrote  unto  us,  If  a 
man's  brother  die,  and  leave  a  wife  be- 
hind him,  and  leave  no  child,  that  his 
brother  should  take  his  wife,  and  raise 
up  seed  unto  his  brother.  There  were 
seven  brethren  :  and  the  first  took  a  wife, 
and  dying  left  no  seed ;  and  the  second 
took  her,  and  died,  leaving  no  seed  be- 
hind him  ;  and  the  third  likewise  :  and 
the  seven  left  no  seed.  Last  of  all  the 
woman  also  died.  In  the  resurrection 
whose  wife  shall  she  be  of  them  ?  for  the 
seven  had  her  to  wife  "  (Mark.  xii.  19- 
23).  The  answer  of  Jesus  was  a  distinct 
challenge  of  their  method  of  expounding 
the  Word,  which  must  have  been  doubly 
galling  to  those  whose    profession  was 


Actual  Attitude  75 

that  of  Biblical  experts,  "Is  it  not  for 
this  cause  that  ye  err,  that  ye  know  not  the 
Scriptures,  nor  the  power  of  God  ?  For 
when  they  shall  rise  from  the  dead,  they 
neither  marry,  nor  are  given  in  marriage ; 
but  are  as  angels  in  heaven.  But  as 
touching  the  dead,  that  they  are  raised  ; 
have  ye  not  read  in  the  book  of  Moses,  in  the 
place  concerning  the  Bush,  How  God 
spake  unto  him  saying,  I  am  the  God  of 
Abraham,  and  the  God  of  Isaac,  and  the 
God  of  Jacob  ?  He  is  not  the  God  of 
the  dead,  but  of  the  living  :  ye  do  greatly 
err  "  (Mark  xii.  24-27).  This  is  ideal 
Biblical  exposition,  an  example  for  all 
who,  like  Jesus,  believe  in  the  Scriptures 
and  aim  to  arrive  at  their  real  meaning. 

The  next  question  was  by  one  of  the 
Pharisees,  who  is  mentioned  also  as  "a 
scribe"  and  "a  lawyer."  They  were 
evidently  putting  forth  their  best  man  to 
measure  swords  with  Jesus  in  expound- 
ing the  Law.  "What  is  the  first  com- 
mandment of  all  ? "  he  asked  ;  and  Jesus, 


76  The  Scriptures 

in  his  answer,  gave  that  wonderful  sum- 
mary which  the  world  has  ever  since  re- 
ceived as  its  best  and  briefest  compendium 
of  ethics  :  "  Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy 
God  with  all  thy  heart,  and  with  all  thy 
soul,  and  with  all  thy  mind.  This  is  the 
great  and  first  commandment.  And  a 
second  like  unto  it  is  this,  Thou  shalt 
love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself.  On  these 
two  commandments  the  whole  law  hangeth, 
and  the  prophets"  (Matt.  xxii.  37^0). 

The  method  of  Jesus  in  approaching 
the  Scriptures  is  further  illustrated  in  a 
later  conference  with  the  Pharisees :  He 
asked  them,  saying,  "  What  think  ye  of 
Christ  ?  whose  son  is  he  ?  They  say 
unto  him,  The  son  of  David.  He  saith 
unto  them,  How  then  doth  David  in  the 
Spirit  call  him  Lord,  saying,  The  Lord 
said  unto  my  Lord,  Sit  thou  on  my  right 
hand,  till  I  put  thine  enemies  underneath 
thy  feet  ?  If  David  then  calleth  him 
Lord,  how  is  he  his  son  ?  And  no  one 
was  able  to  answer  him  a  word,  neither 


Actual  Attitude  77 

durst  any  man  from  that  day  forth  ask 
him  any  more  questions"   (Matt.   xxii. 
42^6).     Observe,  Jesus  asked  the  ques- 
tion, but  did  not  elucidate  it.      Having 
given  them  food  for  reflection,  he  left 
them  to  digest  it  at  their  leisure.     It  may 
be  worth  our  while  to  inquire  how  the 
destructive  critics  of  our  own  time  would 
answer   it.     (a)  Some   would  evade  the 
difficulty  by  denying  that  the  one  hundred 
and  tenth  Psalm  is  Davidic.     What  mat- 
ters it  that  this  Psalm,  which  is  more  fre- 
quently quoted  by  Christ  and  his  apostles 
than  any  other  portion  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment,  is    invariably   ascribed    to   David? 
They  deny  it.     What  matters  it  that  Jesus 
affirmed  without  if  or  peradventure  that 
David  was  its  author?      They  deny  it. 
What  matters  it  that  the  testimony  of  the 
Christian  Church  through  all  the  centu- 
ries, as  formulated  in  its  creeds  and  confes- 
sions, is  to  the  same  purport  ?     They  deny 
it.     {b)  Others  would  answer  by  disput- 
ing the  Messianic  character  of  the  Psalm. 


78  The  Scriptures 

If  forced  to  admit  that  David  was  the 
author,  they  still  insist  that  his  reference 
was  to  one  of  his  own  princely  sons. 
But  which  of  them  could  meet  the 
manifesto  ?  Absalom,  the  scapegrace,  or 
Solomon,  the  wise  fool  ?  Was  there  ever 
one  of  David's  immediate  or  remoter 
lineage  who  became  a  priest,  and  a  per- 
petual priest  ?  Was  ever  one  enthroned 
at  Jehovah's  right  hand,  the  place  of 
equality  with  him  ?  Did  ever  one  rally 
an  army  like  the  dewdrops  of  morning 
and  go  forth  to  universal  conquest  ?  Nay ; 
surely  the  meaning  lies  deeper.  The 
question  is  not  answered  yet.  (c)  Others, 
still,  if  forced  to  admit  the  Davidic  and 
Messianic  character  of  the  Psalm,  will 
deny  its  reference  to  Jesus.  Neverthe- 
less they  profess  to  believe  in  him  who 
said,  as  plainly  as  words  could  express  it, 
"  I  am  that  One  !  "  It  was  of  precisely 
such  men,  the  religious  leaders  of  his  time 
who  professed  to  believe  in  the  Messiah 
and  to  be  looking  for  him,  that  he  said 


Actual  Attitude  79 

in  words  as  scathingly  denunciatory  as  they 
were  pathetically  tender,  "  Ye  search  the 
Scriptures,  because  ye  think  that  in  them 
ye  have  eternal  life ;  and  these  are  they 
which  bear  witness  of  me ;  and  ye  will 
not  come  unto  me,  that  ye  may  have  life  !  " 
Blind,  blind  under  the  noonday  sun  ! 

On  Tuesday  of  Passion  Week  our  Lord 
delivered  his  last  public  discourses.  They 
were  largely  prophetic,  relating  to  the 
overthrow  of  Jerusalem,  the  end  of  the 
world,  the  second  advent  and  the  judg- 
ment. In  predicting  these  things  he  de- 
clares that  he  is  reaffirming  the  prophe- 
cies of  Holy  Writ ;  "  that  all  things  which 
are  written  may  be  fulfilled"  (Luke  xxi. 
22).  He  speaks  of  "  until  the  times  of 
the  Gentiles  be  fulfilled"  (Luke  xxi. 
24),  and  of  the  abomination  of  desola- 
tion which  was  spoken  of  through  Daniel 
the  prophet,  standing  in  the  holy  place  " 
(Matt.  xxiv.  15)  and  of  Noah,  "  For  as  in 

*  This  reference  is  worthy  of  note  in  view  of  the  discredit 
put  upon  the  prophet  Daniel  in  these  days. 


80  The  Scriptures 

those  days  which  were  before  the  flood 
they  were  eating  and  drinking,  marrying 
and  giving  in  marriage,  until  the  day  that 
Noah  entered  into  the  ark,  and  they  knew 
not  until  the  flood  came,  and  took  them 
all  away  ;  so  shall  be  the  coming  of  the 
Son  of  man  "  (Matt.  xxiv.  38,  39). 

As  Jesus  sat  at  the  Pascal  supper  with 
his  disciples  in  the  upper  room,  he  spoke 
of  the  approaching  betrayal  as  a  fulfill- 
ment of  the  Scripture,  "  He  that  eateth 
my  bread  lifted  up  his  heel  against  me  " 
(John  xiii.  18  ;  cf.  Ps.  xli.  9) ;  of  his  aban- 
donment by  the  disciples  in  like  manner, 
"  All  ye  shall  be  offended  in  me  this 
night :  for  it  is  written,  I  will  smite  the 
shepherd,  and  the  sheep  of  the  flock  shall 
be  scattered  abroad"  (Matt.  xxvi.  31  ;  cf. 
Zech.  xiii.  7) ;  also  of  the  persecution  of 
his  enemies,  "  that  the  word  may  be  ful- 
filled tliat  is  written  in  their  law,  They 
hated  me  without  a  cause  (John  xv.  25  ; 
cf.  Psalm  xxxv.  19) ;  of  himself  as  going 
"even  as  it  is  written"  (Matt.  xxvi.  24), 


Actual  Attitude  81 

and  still  more  explicitly,  "  This  which  is 
written  must  be  fulfilled  in  me,  And  he  was 
reckoned  with  transgressors ;  for  that 
which  concerneth  me  hath  fulfillment" 
(Luke  xxii.  37). 

In  his  sacredotal  prayer  on  the  same 
occasion,  he  associates  himself  with  the 
written  Word  on  this  wise,  "  I  manifested 
thy  name  unto  the  men  whom  thou 
gavest  me  out  of  the  world  :  thine  they 
were,  and  thou  gavest  them  to  me ; 
and  they  have  kept  thy  Word.  Now  they 
know  that  all  things  whatsoever  thou 
hast  given  me  are  from  thee  :  for  the 
words  which  thou  gavest  me  I  have 
given  unto  them  ;  and  they  received 
them,  and  knew  of  a  truth  that  I  came 
forth  from  thee,  and  they  believed  that 
thou  didst  send  me  "  (John  xvii.  6-8). 
And  again  he  says,  "  I  have  given  them  thy 
Word"  (verse  14),  and  again,  as  if  to  leave 
no  doubt  as  to  his  meaning,  "  Sanctify  them 
i?i  the  truth,  thy  Word  is  truth  "  (verse  17). 

The  same  night,  in  Gethsemane,  he 

F 


82  The  Scriptures 

yielded  himself  to  the  eternal  purpose,  as 
marked  out  in  the  Scriptures,  when  he 
drank  the  purple  cup  of  agony,  saying 
"  Father,  not  my  will,  but  thine,  be 
done!"  (Luke  xxii.  42). 

As  the  band  of  soldiers  approached  to 
seize  him,  Peter  drew  his  sword,  where- 
upon Jesus  said,  "  Put  up  again  thy  sword 
into  its  place.  Thinkest  thou  that  I  can- 
not beseech  my  Father,  and  he  shall 
even  now  send  me  more  than  twelve 
legions  of  angels  ?  How  then  should  the 
Scriptures  be  fulfilled,  that  thus  it  must 
be?"  (Matt.  xxvi.  52-54).  And  to  the 
soldiers  he  said,  "Are  ye  come  out  as 
against  a  robber  with  swords  and  staves 
to  seize  me  ?  I  was  daily  with  you  in 
the  temple  teaching,  and  ye  took  me  not : 
but  this  is  do?ie  that  the  Scriptures  might 
be  fulfilled  "  (Mark  xiv.  48,  49).  Fulfilled  ! 
Fulfilled  !  How  constantly  he  recurs  to 
this  fulfillment  of  the  Word  ! 

On  trial  before  the  Sanhedrin  his  Mes- 
sianic  claim  was  challenged  again,  "If 


Actual  Attitude  83 

thou  art  the  Christ,  tell  us."     But  why 
should  he  reiterate  it?     For  three  years 
he  had  done  nothing  but  open  unto  them 
their  Scriptures  in  proof  of  his  Messiah- 
ship  ;  nevertheless  he  answers,  and  there 
is  no  misunderstanding  him,  "  If  I  tell 
you,  ye  will  not   believe ;  and  if  I  ask 
you,    ye   will   not    answer.      But   from 
henceforth   shall    the    Son    of   man   be 
seated  at  the  right  hand  of  the  power  of 
God.     And  they  all  said,  Art  thou  then 
the  Son  of  God  ?    And  he  said  unto  them, 
Ye  say  that  I  am.     And  they  said,  What 
further  need  have  we  of  witnesses  ?  for 
we  ourselves  have  heard  from  his  own 
mouth  "  (Luke   xxii.   67-71).      He   was 
next  haled  before  Pilate,  who  asked  him 
"Art  thou  a  King,  then?"     This  ques- 
tion was  of  precisely  the  same  purport  as 
the   preceding,   since   the    Messiah   was 
known  as  "  King  of  the  Jews."     And 
Jesus  answered,  "Thou  sayest  that  I  am 
a  king.      To  this  end  have  I  been  born, 
and   to  this   end   am   I    come   into   the 


84  The  Scriptures 

world,  that  I  should  bear  witness  unto  the 
truth.  Every  one  that  is  of  the  truth 
heareth  my  voice  "  (John  xviii.  37).  In  all 
these  affirmations,  Jesus  represents  him- 
self as  a  witness  bearing  testimony  to  the 
truth  and  to  the  truth  as  contained  in  the 
law  and  the  prophets,  that  is,  in  the  Word 
of  God. 

On  the  cross,  where  every  incident 
was  linked  with  prophecy,  having 
reached  the  fearful  climax  of  his  anguish 
in  the  hiding  of  the  Father's  face,  his 
breaking  heart  found  utterance  in  words 
of  Messianic  import,  "  Eloi,  Eloi,  lama 
sabachthani!  "  (Psalm  xxii.  1) ;  and  when 
the  last  moment  was  reached  he  uttered 
"with  a  loud  voice" — like  a  soldier, 
wounded  unto  death,  but  waving  his 
standard  on  the  conquered  ramparts — 
a  single  word,  one  word  in  which  all 
prophecy  is  gathered  into  glorious  ful- 
fillment, rereXea-rat!  "It  is  finished  !  " 
The  red  path  from  the  protevangel  in 
Eden  to  Golgotha  has  been  traversed ; 


Actual  Attitude  85 

and  all  the  blood  of  all  the  sacrifices  finds 
its  antitype  in  him.  "  Behold  the  Lamb 
of  God!" 

Is  it  possible  for  any  one  to  pursue  the 
foregoing  record  and  not  perceive  that 
Jesus,  by  word  and  example,  was  com- 
mitted to  the  truth  of  the  Scripture  ?    He 
lived  in  it,  stood  for  it,  died  in  vindica- 
tion of  it.     If,  however,  there  should  be 
any  lingering  shadow  of  doubt  concern- 
ing his  attitude,   it  must    surely  vanish 
when  we  hear  him  on  the  way  to  Em- 
maus.     It  is  after  his  resurrection.     He 
has  fallen  in  with  Cleopas  and  a  comrade 
whose  eyes  are  holden  so  that  they  do 
not  know  him.     They  are  lost  in  melan- 
choly on  account  of  his  death.     He  hears 
their  sorrowful  tale  and  then  says,   "O 
foolish  men,  and  slow  of  heart  to  believe 
in  all  that  the  prophets  have  spoken !  Be- 
hooved it  not  the  Christ  to  suffer  these 
things,  and   to    enter   into   his   glory  ?  ' 
(Luke  xxiv.  25,  26) ;  and  then  "  begin- 


86  The  Scriptures 

ning  from  Moses  and  from  all  the  prophets, 
he  interpreted  to  them  in  all  the  Scriptures 
the  things  concerning  himself."  Wonder- 
ful teacher !  What  mastery  of  the 
Scriptures  was  his !  What  insight  into 
its  vast  meaning !  There  was  no  need 
that  he  should  unbind  a  scroll ;  the  or- 
acles were  in  his  memory  and  at  his 
finger  tips.  O  teachers  of  men,  here  is 
One  that  can  teach  all !  The  Word, 
hidden  in  his  heart,  flows  with  the  full 
freeness  of  a  fountain  from  his  lips. 
Blessed  are  all  they  that  hear  him.  Aye, 
their  hearts  burn  within  them  while  he 
opens  to  them  the  Scriptures  by  the 
way. 


CHAPTER  III 

The  Specific  Teaching  of  Jesus  Con- 
cerning the  Scriptures. 

/T  may  seem  a  superserviceable  task  to 
pursue  the  question  further ;  since 
the  foregoing  survey  of  the  life  and 
teachings  of  Jesus  makes  it  perfectly 
clear  that  he  believed  in  the  Scriptures 
without  an  if  or  peradventure.  But  there 
are  some  further  considerations  which 
will  "make  assurance  doubly  sure." 

/.   Our  Lord's  use  of  Current  Versions 

At  the  outset,  we  give  attention  to  a 
fact  which  is  frequently    employed   to 

87 


88  The  Scriptures 

show  that  Jesus  did  not  believe  in  so- 
called  "  verbal  inspiration  ;  "  namely,  his 
custom  of  using  the  Septuagint  and  other 
current  versions  of  the  Scriptures. 

A  precise  statement  of  the  case  is  as 
follows :  (1)  In  some  of  his  quotations 
he  closely  followed  the  Hebrew.*  (2) 
In  others  he  appears  to  have  quoted 
from  a  lost  Aramaic  version.  (3)  In 
others  still,  and  most  frequently,  he  fol- 
lowed the  Septuagint,  a  Greek  transla- 
tion of  the  Hebrew  Scriptures  made  be- 
tween two  and  three  centuries  before  his 
time  by  a  body  of  learned  Alexandrian 
Jews.  This  was  the  Bible  in  common 
use. 

The  first  conclusion  drawn  from  this 
method  of  Jesus  is  that  he  did  not  regard 
any  of  the  current  versions  of  the  Scripture 

*  The  language  which  our  Lord  commonly  spoke  was 
Aramaic  ;  and  at  that  period  Hebrew  was  completely  a  dead 
language,  known  only  to  the  more  educated,  and  only  to  be 
acquired  by  labor:  yet  it  is  clear  that  Jesus  was  acquainted 
with  it,  for  some  of  his  Scriptural  quotations  directly  refer  to 
the  Hebrew  original.     Farrar's  "  Life  of  Christ." 


Specific  Teaching  89 

as  absolutely  true  to  the  original.  Not  one 
of  them  was  in  fact  free  from  error. 
To  say  that  these  errors  were  such  as 
would  naturally  occur  in  a  transcript 
made  by  uninspired  men,  or  that  they 
were  of  such  a  minute  character  as  not 
to  affect  any  of  the  important  truths 
or  precepts  of  the  original — both  of 
which  statements  are  quite  correct — is 
not  germane  to  the  question  now  in 
hand.     The  errors  were  there. 

And  the  same  is  true  of  the  many 
versions  in  use  throughout  the  world  in 
our  time.  In  the  King  James,  the  Ox- 
ford, the  Douay,  and  all  other  versions 
in  the  English  and  other  tongues,  there 
are  errors  such  as  would  seem  to  be  in- 
evitable in  translations  and  transcriptions 
made  by  fallible  men.  This  is  never 
denied ;  it  would  be  folly  to  deny  it.* 

The  second  conclusion  from  the  fact  re- 
ferred to,  is  that  this  imperfection  in  the 
current  Scriptures  of  his  time  did  not  pre- 

*  See  Appendix  C 


90  The  Scriptures 

vent  Jesus  from  placing  his  cordial  confi- 
dence in  them.  This  was  partly  due  to 
the  fact  that  he  knew  the  insignificant 
character  of  those  errors ;  which  must 
have  been  infinitesimal  indeed  to  his 
mind,  since  he  nowhere  made  the 
slightest  allusion  to  them  ;  his  attitude  in 
this  particular  furnishing  a  striking  con- 
trast to  that  of  certain  critics  of  our  time 
who  make  it  an  important  part  of  their 
business  to  multiply  and  magnify  them. 
When  one  pauses  to  reflect,  it  is  indeed 
an  occasion  of  immeasurable  wonder  that 
the  Scriptures  have  been  transmitted 
through  so  many  centuries,  transcribed 
by  so  many  hands,  and  translated  into  so 
many  tongues  with  so  few  traces  of  even 
the  slightest  departure  from  the  original. 
The  marvelous  thing  is  not  that  there 
should  be  errors  in  each  of  these  many 
versions ;  but  that,  on  the  one  hand, 
those  errors  should  be,  as  they  confess- 
edly are,  so  very  slight  ;  and,  on  the 
other,  that   all    the    versions  should  be, 


Specific  Teaching  91 

as  they  are,  in  substantial  accord  with 
each  other.  This  seems  clearly  to  in- 
dicate the  supervision  and  control  of  a 
special  providence  in  the  perpetuation 
of  this  singular  Book. 

But  there  is  a  third  conclusion  which 
must  be  drawn  logically  from  Jesus'  use 
of  the  Septuagint  and  other  imperfect 
versions  ;  namely,  that  the  real  foundation 
of  his  confidence  was  the  absolute  truth  of  the 
original.  One  of  the  destructive  critics 
says,  "  We  cannot  avoid  the  question, 
Did  Christ  and  his  apostles,  who  chose  to 
draw  their  quotations  from  the  Septua- 
gint version  rather  than  from  the  He- 
brew, believe  in  what  some  moderns  are 
insisting  on,  namely,  the  verbal  inspira- 
tion of  the  Old  Testament  ?  If  they  did, 
their  ignorance  of  the  Hebrew  verbiage 
(sic)  is  simply  amazing  !  "  *  Did  it  not 
occur  to  this  writer  that  if  Jesus  had 
quoted  "  from  the  Hebrew  "  it  could  not 

*  "  The  Septuagint  and  Old  Testament  Quotations  in  the 
New  Testament."     Homiletic  Review  XXIV.  14. 


92  The  Scriptures 

have  been  from  the  original  manuscripts 
but  only  from  current  copies  of  them  ? 
And  when  he  speaks  of  the  insistence  of 
"  certain  moderns  "  on  the  verbal  inspira- 
tion of  the  Old  Testament,  he  surely 
cannot  mean  that  anybody,  ancient  or 
modern,  has  claimed  inerrancy  for  any 
current  copies  or  versions  whatsoever,  in 
Hebrew,  in  English  or  in  any  other 
tongue  ;  for  that  is  not  so.  The  claim 
of  absolute  inerrancy  is  made  only  and 
always  for  the  original  autographs  of 
the  Scriptures. 

Ah,  those  "  original  autographs  !  '! 
There  are  not  a  few  among  the  contro- 
versialists of  these  days  who  deride  the 
mere  mention  of  them.  Nevertheless, 
here  is  the  very  pivot  of  the  argument; 
and  there  is  much  in  the  teaching  and 
example  of  Jesus  which  leads  us  to 
believe  that  he  himself  so  regarded 
it. 

In  this  connection  let  it  be  observed 
first  that  the  original  autograph  is  a  his- 


Specific  Teaching  93 

toric  fact.  No  one  will  question  the 
statement  that  every  portion  of  Scripture 
once  existed  precisely  as  it  left  the  hands 
of  those  writers  who  "  spoke  as  they 
were  moved  by  the  Spirit  of  God." 

Second,  every  portion  of  Scripture  in  that 
original  form  must  have  been  precisely  true, 
to  the  last  jot  and  tittle.  Else  there  is  no 
value  in  the  "  moving  of  the  Spirit,"  and 
"  inspiration  "  is  an  inane  and  meaning- 
less word.  God  "  breathed  "  the  orig- 
inal Scriptures  through  "  holy  men  ;  " 
and  when  he  had  thus  breathed  upon  the 
parchment,  the  deposit  left  there  must 
have  been  absolutely  true  ;  since  God 
never  breathed  a  lie. 

Third,  this  is  the  "traditional"  view  of 
the  truth  of  Scripture.  The  universal 
church  has  held  it  through  the  ages. 
The  Jews,  at  the  time  of  the  advent,  no 
more  believed  in  the  absolute  correctness 
of  current  versions  than  we  do  nowadays  : 
but  they  did  believe  unwaveringly  in  the 
perfect  truth  of  the  Scriptures  in  their 


94  The  Scriptures 

original  form.*  And  had  not  Jesus  shared 
in  that  opinion  he  would  surely,  as  an 
honest  teacher,  have  made  some  protest 
against  or  dissent  from  it.f 

*  "  One  thing  at  any  rate  was  quite  certain.  The  Old  Tes- 
tament, leastwise,  the  law  of  Moses,  was  directly  and  wholly 
from  God ;  and  if  so,  then  its  form  also — its  letter— must  be 
authentic  and  authoritative.  Thus  much  on  the  surface,  and 
for  all.  *  *  *  Christ  was  in  sympathy  with  all  the  highest 
tendencies  of  his  people  and  time.  Above  all,  there  was  his 
intimate  converse  with  the  Scriptures  of  the  Old  Testament. 
If,  in  the  synagogue,  he  saw  much  to  show  the  hollowness, 
self-seeking,  pride,  and  literalism  which  a  mere  external  ob- 
servance of  the  law  fostered,  he  would  ever  turn  from  what 
man  or  devils  said  to  what  he  read,  to  what  was  '  written.' 
Not  one  dot  or  hook  of  it  could  fall  to  the  ground — all  must 
be  established  and  fulfilled.  The  law  of  Moses  in  all  its 
bearings,  the  utterances  of  the  prophets — Isaiah,  Jeremiah, 
Ezekiel,  Daniel,  Hosea,  Micah,  Zechariah,  Malachi — and  the 
hopes  and  consolations  of  the  Psalms,  were  all  to  him  literally 
true,  and  cast  their  light  upon  the  building  which  Moses  had 
reared.  It  was  all  one;  a  grand  unity;  not  an  aggregation 
of  different  parts,  but  the  unfolding  of  a  living  organism. 
Chief  est  of  all,  it  was  the  thought  of  the  Messianic  bearing  of 
all  Scripture  in  its  unity,  the  idea  of  the  kingdom  of  God  and 
the  King  of  Zion,  which  was  the  light  and  life  of  all."  Eder- 
sheim's  "  Life  and  Times  of  Jesus  the  Messiah." 

t  We  pause  just  here  to  note  a  singular  parallel  between 
Christ  and  the  Scriptures:  (r)  They  are  both  alike  called  The 
Word  of  God.  (2)  They  are  both  theanthropic  ;  that  is,  the 
Divine  and  human  are  inextricably  blended  in  their  fabric ; 


Specific  Teaching  95 

Fourth :  The  attitude  of  Jesus  was  not 
that  of  a  Biblical  critic,  for  obvious  reasons  : 
(1)  He  showed  his  general  accord  with 
the  ultimate  purpose  of  the  textual  or 
"  lower  criticism,"  in  the  emphasis  which 
he  placed  upon  the  authority  of  the 
Scriptures  in  their  original  form.  Not 
once  or  twice  but  again  and  again  he  pro- 
tested against  the  giving  of  co-ordinate 
authority  to  the  "  tradition  of  the  elders." 
This  could  only  be  because  he  believed 
that  the  Scriptures,  as  thus  originally 
given,  were  an  absolutely  faithful  and 
correct  presentation  of  the  truth  which 
God  desired  to  reveal  to  men. 

yet  not  so  as  to  prevent  their  absolute  truth  and  faultlessness. 
(3)  Both  originals  have  vanished  from  sight ;  and  are  trans- 
mitted through  succeeding  ages  only  through  the  lives  and 
labors  of  fallible  men.  Nevertheless,  we  believe  in  the  unseen 
Christ  and  thus  believing  "rejoice  with  joy  unspeakable  and 
full  of  glory."  And  for  a  like  reason  we  believe  in  the  Orig- 
inal Autograph  of  the  Scriptures  as  it  left  the  pens  of  those 
holy  men  who  wrote  as  they  were  moved  by  the  Spirit  of 
God.  (4)  Despite  all  errors  in  the  transmission  of  the  two 
Words,  written  and  incarnate,  they  are  alike  in  such  sub- 
stantial perfection  as  to  be  "  profitable  unto  every  good  work," 
and  wholly  effective  in  guiding  and  saving  men. 


96  The  Scriptures 

And  just  here  we  note  a  singular  dif- 
ferentiation between  the  Bible  and  all 
other  literature.  The  "  latest  edition  " 
of  other  books  is  the  best.  The  text 
books  used  in  our  schools  of  learning 
must  be  "  revised  "  from  time  to  time  in 
order  to  keep  them  abreast  of  the  age. 
But  the  best  edition  of  the  Bible  is  its 
first  one.  The  effort  on  all  sides  is  not 
to  revise  it  but  to  restore  it  to  its  original 
form.  This  can  only  mean  that  the 
Bible  in  that  original  was  divinely  ad- 
justed to  the  progress  of  the  ages.  All 
its  scientific  propositions,*  its  prophecies,f 

* "  The  order  of  creation,  as  thus  stated  in  Genesis,  is 
faultless  in  the  light  of  modern  science."     Sir  J.  W.  Dawson. 

t  Macaulay  once  ventured  into  the  realms  of  prediction, 
when  he  intimated  that  perhaps,  in  the  remote  future,  some 
traveler  from  New  Zealand  might,  in  the  mist  of  a  vast  soli- 
tude, "  take  his  stand  on  a  broken  arch  of  the  London  bridge 
to  sketch  the  ruins  of  St.  Paul's."  His  words  represent  the 
very  summit  of  improbability ;  yet  there  are  a  thousand  proph- 
ecies in  Scripture  equally  improbable,  uttered  at  times  when 
the  world-powers  were  in  their  glory  ;  and  not  one  of  them 
has  gone  by  default.  Tyre,  Sidon,  Egypt,  Babylon,  Assyria ; 
they  have  turned  out  precisely  as  the  ancient  prophets  said 
they  would  do.     The  graves  of  nations  line  the  path  of  his- 


Specific  Teaching  97 

its  laws  and  jurisprudence/5'  its  theological 
statements,!  and  its  plan  of  salvation,! 
were  recorded  with  a  definite  view  to  the 
vicissitudes  of  time.     And  the   fact  that 

tory ;  and  from  their  solitary  ruins  the  owl  and  bittern,  the  fox 
and  jackal  bear  testimony  to  the  exact  truth  or  the  Word  of 
God. 

*  It  is  sometimes  affirmed,  as  an  objection  to  the  Scriptures, 
that  there  are  portions  which  cannot  be  read  aloud.  It  is 
true ;  but  this  is  an  argument  in  their  favor  ;  since  they  were 
not  written  to  be  read  aloud  but  to  regulate  all  human  life. 
There  are  things  occurring  in  every  Civil  Court  which  cannot 
be  proclaimed  on  the  housetops.  There  are  surgical  opera- 
tions in  every  hospital,  necessary  and  helpful,  which  it  would 
not  be  well  to  perform  before  the  public  eyes.  The  Bible  is 
intended  to  be  a  perfect  system  of  moral  pathology  and  thera- 
peutics. It  anticipates  all  public  crimes  and  private  vices,  and 
deals  heroically  with  them. 

t  All  the  discoveries  of  philosophy  have  not  produced  a 
single  additional  truth  ;  they  have  merely  thrown  new  light 
upon  the  teachings  of  the  Book.  Every  doctrine  which  has 
been  advanced,  from  time  to  time,  in  opposition  to  this  teach- 
ing, has  been  pronounced  a  heresy  and  inevitably  demon- 
strated to  be  false  by  the  stern  logic  of  events.  No  New 
Theology  has  thus  far  been  able  to  vindicate  itself;  its  only 
hope  of  vindication,  in  the  clear  light  of  history,  being  in  its 
final  adjustment  to  the  doctrinal  system  of  the  Scriptures. 

%  There  are  other  sacred  books  and  other  religions  which 
offer  us  religious  doctrines  and  ethical  codes ;  but  there  is 
none  that  answers  this  question  :  "  What  shall  a  man  do  to  be 
delivered  from  the  record  of  a  sinful  past  ?  " 

G 


98  The  Scriptures 

none  of  them  has  been  reversed  or  even 
amended  in  the  progress  of  the  centuries 
can  only  be  explained  by  reference  to 
their  divine  origin. 

In  1881  a  company  of  archaeologists 
under  the  leadership  of  Herr  Brugsch, 
while  excavating  near  the  ancient  city  of 
Thebes,  unearthed  a  burying-place  called 
"The  Gate  of  the  Kings,"  from  which 
they  took  thirty-six  mummies  of  royal 
personages  of  the  eighteenth  dynasty, 
that  is,  a  period  prior  to  1000  B.  C. 
Among  them  was  Rameses  II,  or  Sesos- 
tris,  the  Pharaoh  of  the  captivity.  By 
the  side  of  these  royal  mummies  were 
found  hampers  of  food,  provided  for  their 
use  at  the  resurrection.  A  strange 
awakening  this !  The  shriveled  bodies 
of  the  dead  were  carried  forth  on  the 
shoulders  of  Arabs  into  the  light  of  the 
Nineteenth  Century  of  the  Christian 
Era  !  They  were  wrapped  in  strips  of 
byssus,  which  were  inscribed  with  caba- 
listic sentences  from  the  "  Book  of  the 


Specific  Teaching  99 

Dead,"  the  Scriptures  of  ancient  Egypt. 
How  superannuated  this  book !  How 
far  behind  the  progress  of  events  these 
worthies  of  long  ago  ! 

But  suppose  that,  from  among  that 
imposing  company  of  mummied  worth- 
ies, a  princess  had  calmly  risen  with  all 
the  ancient  dignity  of  her  high  station, 
light  in  her  eyes  and  unabated  strength 
in  her  limbs,  and  had  unfolded  a  scroll, 
written  in  our  current  speech,  covering 
all  the  progress  of  the  intervening  cen- 
turies and  fully  abreast  of  the  spirit  of 
this  age,  would  not  that  have  been 
counted  an  extraordinary  thing  ? 

Yet  this  is  indeed  a  veritable  fact.  Our 
Religion  is  as  old  as  the  Pharaohs  and  as 
fresh  as  this  morning's  dew.  In  the 
ancient  personification  of  Wisdom  it 
speaks  on  this  wise  :  "  I  was  set  up  from 
everlasting,  from  the  beginning,  before 
the  world  was  "  (Prov.  viii.  23). 

(2)  But  in  so  far  as  the  "lower  criticism  " 
works  toward  its  desired  end  by  a  com- 


ioo  The  Scriptures 

parison  of  diverse  copies  and  variant  read- 
ings of  Scripture — however  essential  this 
may  be  now  as  the  method  of  arriv- 
ing at  the  original  text — it  is  easy  to  un- 
derstand why  Jesus,  in  his  capacity  as  a 
religious  teacher,  did  not  employ  it. 

(3)  The  same  remark  may  be  made 
with  reference  to  the  relation  of  Christ 
toward  the  "higher  criticism."  This 
method  is  defined  by  Professor  Zenos  as 
"  The  discovery  and  verification  of  the 
facts  regarding  the  origin,  form  and  value 
of  literary  productions  upon  the  basis  of 
their  internal  characteristics. "  It  is  called, 
also,  "literary  criticism,"  and  "  historical 
criticism  ;  "  and  as  such  its  value  is  beyond 
all  question  or  peradventure.  The  so- 
called  "  Introductions  to  the  Scriptures  " 
are  largely  based  upon  it*     It  is  scarcely 

*  "  The  word  '  higher '  is  here  a  technical  term,  used  for  the 
convenience'  sake  over  against  the  technical  term  'lower,' to  dis- 
tinguish this  literary  criticism  from  another  and  still  more  ex- 
ternal kind  of  criticism — viz.,  that  which  is  occupied  with  de- 
termining the  exact  original  text  of  Scripture.  The  lower  crit- 
icism is  textual  criticism  ;  literary  criticism,  is  higher  criticism 


Specific   Teaching  101 

necessary  to  say,  however,  that  a  method 
so  distinctly  literary  lay  outside  the  prov- 
ince of  Jesus'  work.  Therefore  he  did 
not  use  it. 

(4)  It  remains  to  add  that  the  radical 
form  of  the  "  higher  criticism,"  as  repre- 
sented by  those  who  insist  that  no  true 
estimate  can  be  formed  of  the  Scriptures 
except  by  such  as  first  dispossess  them- 
selves of  all  conviction  as  to  their  divine 
origin  and  character,  had  no  place  in  the 
precept  or  example  of  Jesus.  Could  he 
look  at  the  Bible  that  way  ?  Could  he 
regard  it  as  mere  "literature?"  Not 
for  a  moment !  He  believed  in  it  as  the 
one   Book,  standing  solitary  and  alone, 

because  it  rises  from  the  subordinate  and  subsidiary  question 
as  to  the  accuracy  with  which  certain  records  have  been 
transmitted  to  us,  to  the  higher  and  broader  question  as  to 
how  these  records  came  into  existence  at  all."  And  again, 
"  The  higher  criticism  is  literary  criticism  as  distinguished 
from  textual  criticism,  which  is  the  'lower.'  It  is  not  biblical 
philology,  nor  exegesis,  nor  biblical  history,  nor  dogmatics, 
nor  apologetics,  although  it  has  relations  with  all  of  these. 
It  is  the  Science  of  the  structure  and  history  of  the  Biblical 
writings  as  works  of  human  authorship.'1  Professor  Francis 
Brown,  in  Homiletic  Review.     Vol.  xxiii.  295. 


102  The  Scriptures 

separated  from  all  other  literature  what- 
soever by  the  fact  that  God  breathed  it. 

And  those  who  follow  Christ  regard  it 
in  the  same  way.  A  Christian  is  neces- 
sarily "  prejudiced  "  in  favor  of  the  Bible  ; 
and  by  that  fact  he  is  disqualified  from 
passing  an  "  unbiassed  "  judgment  upon  it. 
He  cannot  dispossess  himself,  even  for 
such  high  purposes  as  are  claimed  for 
the  higher  criticism,  of  his  faith  in  the 
Scriptures  as  a  singular  book,  separated 
from  all  other  literature  by  the  fact  that 
it  was  "written  by  men  who  spoke  from 
God,  being  moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost." 
As  well  ask  a  loving  and  loyal  son  to  give 
up  his  natural  regard  for  his  mother  in 
order  to  qualify  himself  for  service  on  a 
jury  which  has  been  empanelled  to  inves- 
tigate her  personal  purity.  It  is  impos- 
sible ;   it  is  unthinkable. 

This  does  not  mean,  however,  that 
there  is  no  place  for  the  higher  criticism, 
even  in  this  narrower  sense.  There  are 
plenty  of  scholarly  people  in  the  world 


Specific  Teaching  103 

who  have  no  prepossessions  in  favor  of 
the  truth  of  Scriptures  ;  nor  is  there  dan- 
ger of  ever  having  a  dearth  of  such.  And 
their  work  has  a  definite  value,  too.  It 
reaches  incidental  conclusions,  not  infre- 
quently, which  accord  with  the  truest 
views  of  inspiration.  But,  so  long  as  this 
work  is  being  so  industriously  pursued 
with  such  results  by  outsiders,  why  should 
the  followers  of  Christ  be  expected  or 
inclined  to  disrobe  themselves  of  their 
devotion  to  principle  in  order  to  join  the 
ranks  of  those  who  disavowing  all  relig- 
ious predilections,  are  thoroughly  qualified 
to  sit  in  purely  secular  judgment  on  the 
Word  of  God  ? 

II.   Titles  applied  to  the  Scriptures  by  Jesus 

We  are  living  in  a  vortex  of  conflicting 
voices ;  and  Christ's  throne  of  authority 
is  just  there,  in  the  "eye  of  the  storm." 
He  speaks  to-day  as  he  spoke  to  Job  out 
of  the  midst  of  the  whirlwind,  and  who 
are  Bildad  and  Eliphaz  and  Zophar  that 


104  The  Scriptures 

they  should  darken  counsel  by  words 
without  knowledge  ?  Great  scholars,  no 
doubt ;  but,  in  our  school,  there  is  no 
expert  but  One.  Are  we  asking  a 
thousand  questions  about  the  Bible  ?  So 
long  as  we  remain  Christians,  they  are 
all  reduced  to  this,  What  does  Jesus  say  ? 

It  is  our  purpose  now  to  consider  the 
terms  used  by  him  to  designate  the 
Scriptures.  This  is  important  as  prepar- 
ing the  way  for  his  more  positive  and 
definite  affirmations. 

The  Book  in  the  hand  of  Jesus  was 
the  "  Old  Testament  "  ;  but  at  that  time 
no  such  title  was  known.  It  was  origi- 
nated by  Paul  in  2  Cor.  iii.  14-15,  A.  V., 
and  popularized  by  Jerome's  use  of 
Testamentum  in  the  Vulgate.  Our  Lord, 
of  course,  makes  no  reference  to  it. 

(1)  He  calls  the  Bible  the  Word  of  God: 
this  to  begin  with.  Does  he  not  qualify 
the  phrase  in  any  way  ?  Never  once. 
He  says  what  he  means  and  means 
what    he  says ;     and   when    he  refrains 


Specific  Teaching  105 

from  qualifying  a  statement  it  is  obviously 
superserviceable  for  any  of  his  disciples 
to  supply  the  omission.  His  teaching, 
taken  as  a  whole,  must  stand  as  he  leaves  it. 

In  the  Parable  of  the  Sower,  in  which 
he  sets  forth  the  economy  of  his  kingdom, 
he  says,  "  The  sower  soweth  the  Word  " 
(Mark  iv.  14) :  wherefore  he  calls  it  "  the 
Word  of  the  Kingdom  "  (Matt.  xiii.  19). 

He  prophesies  the  persecutions  which 
shall  arise  from  the  preaching  of  the 
Word  (Matt.  xiii.  21  ;  Markiv.  17) ;  and 
pronounces  a  blessing  on  those  who  shall 
"  hear  the  Word  of  God  and  keep  it " 
(Luke  xi.  28). 

In  his  denunciation  of  the  Scribes  and 
Pharisees  on  account  of  their  false  teach- 
ing he  charges  them  with  "  making  the 
Word  of  God  of  none  effect  by  their 
traditions  "  (Mark  vii.  13). 

He  said  to  the  Jews  who  sought  to 
kill  him,  "  Ye  have  not  his  Word  abiding 
in  you  :  for  whom  he  sent,  him  ye  be- 
lieve not"  (John  v.  38),  a  plain  reference 


106  The  Scriptures 

to  the  Messianic  prophecies.  And  after- 
ward he  said  to  those  who  took  up  stones 
to  stone  him,  "  Is  it  not  written  in  your 
law,  I  said,  Ye  are  gods  ?  If  he  called 
them  gods,  unto  whom  the  Word  of 
God  came  (and  the  Scripture  cannot  be 
broken) "  etc.  (John  x.  25),  thus  making 
it  quite  clear  that  when  he  spoke  of  the 
Word  of  God  he  meant  Scripture,  or  the 
written  Word. 

On  another  occasion  he  said,  "  If  I 
had  not  done  among  them  the  works 
which  none  other  did,  they  had  not  had 
sin ;  but  now  have  they  both  seen  and 
hated  both  me  and  my  Father.  But 
this  cometh  to  pass,  that  the  Word 
might  be  fulfilled  that  is  written  in  their 
law,  They  hated  me  without  a  cause  " 
(John  xv.  24-25). 

In  his  sacerdotal  prayer  he  uses  the 
title  thrice ;  "  I  manifested  thy  name 
unto  the  men  whom  thou  gavest  me 
out  of  the  world ;  thine  they  were, 
and    thou     gavest    them    to     me ;    and 


Specific  Teaching  107 

they  have  kept  thy  Word  (John  xvii. 
6).  Again,  "  I  have  given  them  thy 
Word  ;  and  the  world  hated  them,  be- 
cause they  are  not  of  the  world,  even 
as  I  am  not  of  the  world  "  (John  xvii. 
14).  And  again,  "  Sanctify  them  in  the 
truth;  thy  Word  is  truth"  (John  xvii. 
17).  It  is  evident  that  here  he  does 
not  refer  to  God's  oral  word,  as  spoken 
to  individuals  on  occasion,  but  to  his 
Word  as  recorded  in  the  Scriptures. 
And,  in  this  connection,  it  is  a  fact  worth 
mentioning  that  wherever  this  expression 
is  used  in  the  teaching  of  Jesus,  it  always 
appears  to  mean  the  written  and  not  the 
oral  Word.  Not  that  this  is  a  matter 
of  supreme  importance  to  the  argument 
in  hand  ;  for,  were  it  otherwise,  it  would 
still  remain  that  the  word  spoken  to 
this  or  that  patriarch  or  prophet,  or  to 
any  particular  age,  would  have  been  of 
merely  temporary  value  had  it  not  been 
transmitted  in  written  form  to  succeed- 
ing generations. 


108  The  Scriptures 

(2)  Our  Lord  also  refers  to  the  Bible  as 
Scripture  or  "  Writings.''  The  reason  is 
obvious,  and  it  would  be  more  obvious 
to  his  immediate  hearers  than  to  us. 
For  there  was,  at  that  time,  a  body 
of  learned  Jews,  called  scribes,  whose 
special  function  was  to  copy  or  trans- 
cribe the  Word  of  God.  Dr.  SchafT 
says  of  them,  "  Inasmuch  as  such  a  mi- 
nute acquaintance  with  the  law,  as  their 
business  implied,  led  them  to  become 
authorities  upon  the  details  of  Mosaism, 
it  came  to  pass  that  they  were  popularly 
regarded  as  the  teachers  of  the  law."  In 
other  words  they  were  the  "  Biblical  ex- 
perts "  of  their  time.  So  while  the  term 
Scripture  or  "  Writings "  is  ultimately 
traced  to  the  fact  that  "  Men  spake  from 
God  being  moved  by  the  Holy  Spirit," 
and  wrote  accordingly,  the  fact  that  it 
was  the  familiar  title  was  due,  probably, 
to  the  relation  of  these  scribes  to  the 
copies  of  Scripture  in  common  use. 

By  the  term  "Scripture,"  in  the  sin- 


Specific  Teaching  109 

gular,  he  sometimes  designates  a  particu- 
lar passage  or  portion  of  Holy  Writ :  as 
when,  in  the  synagogue  at  Nazareth, 
opening  the  scroll  of  Isaiah  at  the  lesson 
of  the  day  (Isaiah  lxi.  1-3),  he  said  to  the 
assembled  worshipers,  "This  day  is  this 
Scripture  fulfilled  in  your  ears  "  (Luke  iv. 
21).  And  again  in  reproving  the  scribes 
for  rejecting  him,  "  Have  ye  not  read 
even  this  Scripture  :  The  stone  which  the 
builders  rejected,  the  same  was  made  the 
head  of  the  corner ;  this  was  from  the 
Lord,  and  it  is  marvelous  in  our  eyes?" 
(Mark  xii.  10  cf.  Ps.  cxviii.  22).  And  at 
supper  in  the  upper  room,  in  reference 
to  the  betrayer,  "  I  know  whom  I  have 
chosen :  but  that  the  Scripture  may  be 
fulfilled,  He  that  eateth  my  bread  lifted 
up  his  heel  against  me"  (Johnxiii.  18  cf. 
Ps.  xli.  9). 

At  other  times  the  singular  is  used  to 
designate  the  general  trend  of  various 
portions  of  Holy  Writ :  as  when  Jesus 
lifted  up  his  voice  on  the  last  day  of  the 


1 1  o  The  Scriptures 

feast,  during  the  ceremony  known  as  the 
Effusion  of  Waters,  and  cried,  "If  any 
man  thirst,  let  him  come  unto  me  and 
drink.  He  that  believeth  on  me,  as  the 
Scripture  hath  said,  from  within  him  shall 
flow  rivers  of  living  water  "  (John  vii.  38  ; 
cf.  Is.  xii.  3  ;  Is.  xliv.  3;  Is.  lv.  1  et  al.). 
And  again,  in  his  sacerdotal  prayer,  "  I 
kept  them  in  thy  name  which  thou  hast 
given  me :  and  not  one  of  them  perished, 
but  the  son  of  perdition  ;  that  the  Scrip- 
ture might  be  fulfilled  "  (John  xvii.  12, 
where  a  general  reference  is  made  to  all 
portions  of  Scripture  touching  upon  the 
betrayer  and  his  punishment).  And  still 
again  where  he  reminds  his  enemies  of 
their  familiar  proverb  that  "the  Scripture 
cannot  be  broken  "  (John  x.  35). 

The  plural  is  generally  used  to  desig- 
nate the  Old  Testament  as  a  whole  :  as 
where  he  says,  "  Ye  search  the  Scrip- 
tures ;  because  ye  think  that  in  them  ye 
have  eternal  life  and  these  are  they  which 
testify  of  me  "  (John  v.  39).     And  again, 


Specific   Teaching  1 1 1 

with  reference  to  the  difficulties  of  the 
resurrection  suggested  by  the  scribes  in 
the  problem  of  the  sevenfold  widow, 
"  Ye  do  err,  not  knowing  the  Scriptures, 
nor  the  power  of  God  "  (Matt.  xxii.  29- 
33). 

At  other  times  the  plural  is  used  to 
gather  up  a  number  of  prophetic  pas- 
sages, or  the  sum  total  of  their  meaning, 
as  when  Jesus  rebuked  Peter  for  drawing 
the  sword  to  defend  him,  "  Put  up  again 
thy  sword  into  its  place  :  for  all  they  that 
take  the  sword,  shall  perish  with  the 
sword.  Or  thinkest  thou  that  I  cannot 
beseech  my  Father,  and  he  shall  even 
now  send  me  more  than  twelve  legions 
of  angels  ?  How  then  should  the  Scrip- 
tures be  fulfilled,  that  thus  it  must  be  ?  " 
(Matt.  xxvi.  52-54).  Also  in  his  words 
to  those  who  arrested  him  :  "  Are  ye 
come  out  as  against  a  robber  with  swords 
and  staves  to  seize  me  ?  I  sat  daily  in  the 
temple  teaching,  and  ye  took  me  not. 
But    all  this  is  come  to  pass,   that  the 


1 1 2  The  Scriptures 

Scriptures  of  the  prophets  might  be  ful- 
filled "  (Matt.  xxvi.  55,  56). 

The  term  "  Writing  "  or  "  Writings  " 
is  imployed  interchangeably  with  "  Scrip- 
ture "  or  "  Scriptures."  The  frequency 
with  which  Jesus  used  the  expression 
"  It  is  written  "  is  significant  of  his  loyalty 
to  the  written  Word.  In  his  temptation 
in  the  wilderness  he  foiled  his  adversary 
thrice  in  this  manner,  in  each  case  quot- 
ing from  Deuteronomy,  which  is  the 
most  discredited  of  all  the  books  of 
Scripture  among  the  radical  critics  of  our 
time  (Matt.  ii.  5-10).  Of  John  the  Bap- 
tist he  said,  "This  is  he  of  whom  it  is 
written,  Behold,  I  send  my  messenger 
before  thy  face,  who  shall  prepare  thy 
way  before  thee  "  (Matt.  xi.  10).  In 
his  cleansing  of  the  temple  he  said,  "It 
is  written,  My  house  shall  be  called  a 
house  of  prayer ;  but  ye  make  it  a  den 
of  robbers  "  (Matt.  xxi.  13).  To  the 
scribes  and  Pharisees  he  said,  "  Well  did 
Isaiah  prophesy  of  you  hypocrites,  as  it 


Specific  Teaching  113 

is  written,  This  people  honoreth  me 
with  their  lips,  but  their  heart  is  far  from 
me"  (Mark  vii.  6).  To  the  disciples 
who  asked  him,  "  How  is  it  that  the 
scribes  say  that  Elijah  must  first  come  ?" 
he  answered  and  told  them  "  Elijah  in- 
deed cometh  first,  and  restoreth  all 
things  :  and  how  is  it  written  of  the  Son 
of  man,  that  he  should  suffer  many  things 
and  be  set  at  nought  ?  But  I  say  unto 
you,  that  Elijah  is  come,  and  they  have 
also  done  unto  him  whatsoever  they 
would,  even  as  it  is  written  of  him  " 
(Mark  ix.  12-13).  To  the  Jews  who 
murmured  at  his  hard  sayings  he  an- 
swered, "  It  is  written  in  the  prophets, 
And  they  shall  all  be  taught  of  God. 
Every  one  that  hath  heard  from  the 
Father,  and  hath  learned,  cometh  unto 
me"  (John  vi.  45).  He  speaks  of  the 
teachings  of  Moses,  in  general  and  par- 
ticular, as  "  Writings "  (Matt.  xix.  7; 
Mark  x.  4,  xii.  19  ;  Luke  xx.  28  ;  John 
v.  46^47).     To  the  Pharisees,  calling  his 

H 


1 1 4  The  Scriptures 

credentials  in  question,  he  said,  "Yea 
and  in  your  law  it  is  written,  that  the 
witness  of  two  men  is  true.  I  am  he 
that  beareth  witness  of  myself,  and  the 
Father  that  sent  me  beareth  witness  of 
me "  (John  viii.  17-18).  And  when 
they  would  have  stoned  him  for  making 
himself  equal  with  God,  he  answered, 
"  Is  it  not  written  in  your  law,  I  said,  Ye 
are  gods  ?  "  (John  x.  34).  In  his  farewell 
interview  with  the  disciples  in  the  upper 
room  he  said,  "  The  Son  of  man  goeth, 
even  as  it  is  written  of  him  :  but  woe 
unto  that  man  through  whom  the  Son 
of  man  is  betrayed  !  "  (Matt.  xxvi.  24). 
And  again,  "  All  ye  shall  be  offended  in 
me  this  night :  for  it  is  written,  I  will 
smite  the  shepherd,  and  the  sheep  of  the 
flock  shall  be  scattered  abroad  "  (Matt. 
xxvi.  31).  And  again,  "  This  cometh  to 
pass,  that  the  word  may  be  fulfilled  that 
is  written  in  their  law,  They  hated  me 
without  a  cause  "  (John  xv.  25). 

(3)  Another  of  the  familiar  titles  which 


Specific  Teaching  1 1 5 

Jesus  applies  to  the  inspired  volume  is  "  The 
Law."  It  must  be  remembered  that 
the  Theocracy  or  government  of  the 
Jews  had  no  constitution  or  legal  code 
apart  from  the  Scriptures.  For  this  rea- 
son the  scribes  were  also  called  "  lawyers," 
their  special  business  being  not  only  to 
transcribe  but  to  expound  the  Word  of 
God. 

The  Law  is  frequently  used  by  our 
Lord  as  a  general  term  including  the 
whole  Book :  as  where  he  says,  "  Is  it 
not  written  in  your  law,  I  said,  Ye  are 
gods  ?  "  (John  x.  34),  his  reference  being 
not  to  any  portion  of  the  law  proper  but 
to  Psalm  lxxxi.  6.  Also  in  defending  his 
credentials,  "Yea  and  in  your  law  it  is 
written  that  the  witness  of  two  men  is 
true"  (John  viii.  17).  To  his  disciples 
he  speaks  of  his  rejection  on  this  wise  : 
"This  cometh  to  pass,  that  the  Word 
may  be  fulfilled  that  is  written  in  their 
law,  They  hated  me  without  a  cause  " 
(John  xv.  25  cf.  Ps.  xxxv.  19  and  Ps.  lxix. 


1 1 6  The  Scriptures 

4).  And  where  he  defends  his  disciples 
for  plucking  the  ears  of  grain  on  the  Sab- 
bath by  reference  to  precedent :  "  Have 
ye  not  read  in  the  law,  that  on  the  Sab- 
bath day  the  priests  in  the  temple  pro- 
fane the  Sabbath,  and  are  guiltless?" 
(Matt. xii.  5  ;  cf.  N umbers  xxviii.  9) .  Also 
in  his  denunciation  of  the  Pharisees  "  Ye 
tithe  mint  and  anise  and  cummin,  and 
have  left  undone  the  weightier  matters 
of  the  law,"  these  weightier  matters  be- 
ing specified  as  "  justice,  and  mercy,  and 
faith,"  which  are  fundamental  principles 
in  the  higher  ethics  of  the  Law  (Matt. 
xxiii.  23).  And  in  his  interview  with  a 
certain  lawyer,  "  What  is  written  in  the 
law?  How  readest  thou?"  (Luke  x. 
26).  To  the  Pharisees,  again,  "  It  is 
easier  for  heaven  and  earth  to  pass  away 
than  for  one  tittle  of  the  law  to  fall" 
(Luke  xvi.  17). 

This  title  is  also  applied  specifically  to 
the  Pentateuch,  which  was  the  first  of  the 
three  divisions  familiar  to  every  pupil  in 


Specific  Teaching  117 

the  rabbinical  schools,  to  wit,  "  The  Law 
the  Prophets  and  the  Hagiographa. ' '  To 
the  disciples  in  the  upper  room,  after  his 
resurrection,  he  said  in  terms  which  sug- 
gest a  customary  mode  of  instruction, 
"  These  are  my  words  which  I  spake 
unto  you,  while  I  was  yet  with  you,  that 
all  things  must  needs  be  fulfilled  which 
are  written  in  the  law  of  Moses,  and  the 
prophets,  and  the  psalms  concerning 
me  "  (Luke  xxiv.  44),  where  the  third 
division  is  named  after  the  first  and  most 
important  book  in  it. 

The  Law  as  contained  in  the  Penta- 
teuch was  divided  into  (a)  The  Moral 
Law,  or  Decalogue,  in  which  were  laid 
down  certain  fundamental  principles,  in- 
tended to  be  of  binding  force  forever, 
because  they  are  interwoven  with  the 
very  nerves  and  sinews  of  the  human 
constitution  ;  (b)  The  Civil  Law,  which 
was  intended  to  apply  particularly  to  the 
government  of  Israel ;  but  involving  cer- 
tain vital  facts  which  were  destined  to 


1 1 8  The  Scriptures 

outlive  the  theocracy  and  furnish  the 
basis  of  jurisprudence  for  every  age ; 
(c)  The  Ceremonial  Law ;  an  elaborate 
cult  of  rites  and  ceremonies,  centering  in 
the  Messiah  as  "the  Hope  of  Israel" 
and,  for  that  reason,  finding  its  ful- 
fillment and  end  in  Jesus.  This  is  that 
"handwriting  of  ordinances"  which  was 
finally  removed  by  Christ,  who  "  nailed 
it  to  his  cross,  taking  it  out  of  the  way." 
"  The  Law  and  the  Prophets "  was 
another  phrase  used  to  designate  the  Old 
Testament  as  a  whole.  It  suggests  a 
two-fold  division;  "the  Law,"  that  is, 
the  Pentateuch,  and  "the  Prophets," in- 
cluding all  the  rest.  In  announcing  the 
Golden  Rule  Jesus  said,  "  This  is  the 
law  and  the  prophets,"  meaning  that  it 
comprehends  the  ethical  system  of  the 
entire  Scriptures  (Matt.  vii.  12).  A  like 
use  of  this  title  is  found  in  his  announce- 
ment of  the  summary  :  "  Thou  shalt 
love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  heart, 
and  with  all  thy  soul  and  with  all  thy 


Specific  Teaching  119 

mind.  This  is  the  great  and  first  com- 
mandment. And  a  second  like  un^o  it 
is  this,  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as 
thyself.  On  these  two  commandments 
the  whole  law  hangeth  and  the  proph- 
ets "  (Matt.  xxii.  37-40).  In  repelling 
the  thought  that  his  purpose  was  to  abro- 
gate the  Moral  Law  or  to  annul  any  of 
the  vital  principles  of  the  Mosaic  Law 
in  general,  he  said :  "  Think  not  that  I 
came  to  destroy  the  law  or  the  prophets  : 
I  came  not  to  destroy,  but  to  fulfill.  For 
verily  I  say  unto  you,  Till  heaven  and 
earth  pass  away,  one  jot  or  one  tittle  shall 
in  no  wise  pass  away  from  the  law,  till 
all  things  be  accomplished  "  (Matt.  v.  17, 
18). 

The  comprehensive  and  flexible  use 
of  the  phrase  is  seen  in  the  statement 
"  All  the  prophets  and  the  law  prophesied 
until  John"  (Matt.  xi.  13). 

The  Law  of  Moses  is  a  phrase  of  sim- 
ilar import.  "  Did  not  Moses  give  you 
the  law?"    (John  vii.  10).     "That   the 


120  The  Scriptures 

Law  of  Moses  may  not  be  broken" 
(John  vii.  23).  "  That  all  things  must 
needs  be  fulfilled,  which  are  written  in 
the  Law  of  Moses  concerning  me " 
(Luke  xxiv.  44). 

It  will  be  seen  that  in  each  case  of  the 
three  titles  referred  to — the  Word,  the 
Scripture  and  the  Law — tribute  is  paid 
to  the  divine  origin  and  authority  of  the 
Book.  By  "  the  Word"  we  are  given 
to  understand  that  Jesus  accepted  it  as  a 
communication  from  God.  In  his  use 
of  the  term  "  Scripture  "  we  perceive 
that  he  approved  it,  in  its  written  form, 
as  intended  for  common  use.  And 
when  he  called  it  "the  Law"  he  empha- 
sized its  authority  as  a  trustworthy  rule 
of  life. 

Had  he  said  nothing  further  of  the 
Bible  than  what  is  clearly  suggested  in 
these  titles,  we  should  have  sufficient 
reason  to  affirm  that  he  believed  it. 
But,  as  we  shall  see,  his  teaching  goes 
much  further  ;  it  is  not  confined  to  mere 


Specific  Teaching  121 

intimations  and  suggestions ;  before  we 
are  through  with  this  investigation  we 
shall  find  him  confirming  it  with  a  Yea 
and  Amen,  and  placing  the  red  seal  of 
divine  authority  upon  it. 

III.  Positive  Affirmations  by  Jesus 

"It  is  impossible  to  frame  a  law"  so 
runs  the  proverb,  "  through  which  an 
astute  lawyer  cannot  drive  a  coach  and 
four."  In  other  words,  the  definitive 
possibilities  of  human  language  are  but 
a  frail  barrier  against  the  subtle  arts  and 
stratagems  of  sophistry.  A  reasonably 
clever  dialectician  finds  no  difficulty  in 
explaining  away  any  ordinary  proposition 
under  the  specious  pretense  of  explaining- 
it.  One  by  one  the  sayings  of  Jesus  re- 
specting the  truth  of  Scripture  have  been 
dealt  with  in  this  manner ;  and  the  method 
is  best  exposed  and  controverted  by  such 
a  comprehensive  survey  of  those  sayings 
in  toto  as  to  make  the  intent  of  Jesus  per- 
fectly clear.     This  having  been  done,  it 


122  The  Scriptures 

remains  to  indicate  certain  of  his  state- 
ments which  are  of  so  positive  a  charac- 
ter as  to  make  instantly  obvious  the 
duplicity  of  any  attempt  at  evasion, 
equivocation,  circumvention  or  subter- 
fuge. 

( 1 ) .  He  affirms  tha  t  the  Scrip  tures  are  true. 
As  he  said  of  himself,  "I  am  the  truth;" 
so  in  his  sacerdotal  prayer  he  said  of  Scrip- 
ture, "  Thy  word  is  truth."  At  the  time 
of  that  utterance,  in  view  of  his  approach- 
ing death,  he  was  commending  his  dis- 
ciples to  the  care  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
by  whose  influence  in  sanctirication  they 
were  to  be  kept,  controlled,  endued  with 
power,  directed  in  service,  and  built  up 
and  established  in  the  most  holy  faith. 
It  is  an  important  fact,  never  to  be  for- 
gotten, that  all  this  is  wrought  by  the 
Holy  Spirit  through  the  instrumentality 
of  the  Scriptures ;  a  fact  which  Jesus 
distinctly  recognized  and  taught  in  this 
solemn  petition,  "  Sanctify  them  in  the 
truth;  thy  Word  is  truth"  (John  xvii.  17). 


Specific  Teaching  123 

Observe  the  form  of  the  statement ;  he 
does  not  say,  Thy  word  contains  truth, 
or  even  Thy  word  is  true,  but  "  Thy 
word  is  truth."  The  emphasis  of  lan- 
guage could  go  no  further. 

If  Jesus  had  said  "  The  Bible  contains 
truth  "  he  would  have  said  what  ever- 
body  knows  and  concedes  and  does  not 
particularly  care  for.  In  point  of  fact  it 
would  not  have  been  worth  saying  at  all. 
It  is  true  the  Bible  "contains"  some  of 
the  most  sublime  doctrinal  and  ethical 
wisdom  ;  but  what  of  it  ?  That  fact  does 
not  differentiate  the  Bible  from  other 
books.  It  makes  the  superiority  of  the 
Bible  a  matter  not  of  quality  but  of  mere 
more  or  less.  Some  of  the  most  glow- 
ing and  enthusiastic  tributes  to  the  ex- 
cellence of  certain  portions  of  Scripture 
have  fallen  from  the  lips  of  atheists  and 
infidels.  It  means  nothing,  then,  to  say 
that  the  Bible  "  contains  "  truth.  The 
question  is  whether  it  contains  it  in  pay- 
ing quantities  or  not. 


124  The  Scriptures 

Furthermore  had  Jesus  in  such  man- 
ner affirmed  the  partial  truth  of  Scripture 
he  would  thereby  have  intimated,  also, 
that  it  is  partly  false.  A  solution  of  any- 
thing involves  a  solvent  of  something  else. 
It  should  be  observed,  just  here,  that 
when  reference  is  made  by  the  destruc- 
tive critics,  to  the  errors  of  Scripture,  they 
do  not  mean  such  as  would  be  likely  to 
arise  from  transcriptions  running  through 
a  period  of  some  thousands  of  years  but 
they  mean  downright  misstatements  aris- 
ing from  ignorance,  misapprehension  or 
disingenuousness  on  the  part  of  the  origi- 
nal writers.  This  being  so,  it  would  be  in- 
teresting to  know  how  these  critics  would 
have  the  average  reader  distinguish  be- 
tween the  false  and  true.  Would  it  not 
be  wise  to  have  an  Advisory  Board  made 
up  of  such  as  deem  themselves  compe- 
tent to  say  just  where  the  men  (who 
"  spake  from  God,  being  moved  by  the 
Holy  Spirit  ")  were  wise  and  honest  and 
where  they  were  otherwise  ?     Our  Lord 


Specific  Teaching  125 

(John  v.  39,  either  version)  encouraged 
the  humblest  of  truth-seekers  to  read  the 
Bible  ;  but  this  cannot  be  done  with  im- 
punity if  there  is  an  admixture  of  false- 
hood in  it.  As  well  invite  a  company  of 
children  to  sit  down  at  a  table  where  un- 
known portions  of  the  viands  and  condi- 
ments are  known  to  be  poisonous.  "  Ah, 
but  the  errors  are  only  in  non-essentials." 
Who  knows  that?  Or  who  presumes 
to  determine  it  ?  Or  who  can  give  assur- 
ance of  it?  No  Biblical  critic  nor  all 
Biblical  critics  together  can  regulate  the 
runways  of  error  when  once  the  sluices 
are  thrown  open.  The  only  safe  plan 
would  be  to  make  the  Church  a  co-ordi- 
nate source  of  authority  in  spiritual  things 
and  let  it  put  all  false  and  dangerous  por- 
tions of  the  Bible  into  an  Index  Expurga- 
torius.     That  would  settle  it. 

And  further  still,  if  Jesus  had  meant 
that  the  Bible  merely  "  contains  "  truth, 
it  could  no  longer  be  called  "  the  best  of 
books."     Put  a  hundred  of  the  standard 


126  The  Scriptures 

works  of  science  and  history  into  a  heap, 
and  over  against  them  place  these  Scrip- 
tures :  then  ask  your  destructive  critic  to 
select  from  among  them  the  least  trust- 
worthy of  all,  and  if  he  is  an  honest  man 
he  will  without  hesitation  point  to  the 
Bible.  We  used  to  think  it  only  moder- 
ate praise  to  call  the  Bible  "  the  best  of 
books,"  but  even  this  tribute  must, 
under  such  circumstances,  be  withheld 
from  it. 

But,  worst  of  all,  if  Jesus  meant  that 
the  Bible  merely  "  contains  "  truth,  he 
made  it  practically  worthless  for  the 
guidance  of  life.  To  say  that  a  book 
which  is  partly  false  can  be  relied  upon 
as  an  "  infallible  rule  of  faith  and  prac- 
tice "  looks  to  common  people,  who  are 
as  yet  unfamiliar  with  the  technique  of 
Biblical  criticism,  like  a  reprehensible 
use  of  the  English  tongue.  If  it  be  re- 
plied that  the  purpose  of  the  Scriptures 
is  simply  to  save  a  man  from  hell-fire 
and  not  to  instruct  him  in  science  and 


Specific   Teaching  127 

chronology,  we  respectfully  challenge 
the  right  of  any  man  to  limit  the  ends 
and  uses  of  revelation  in  that  way.  If  it 
be  said  that  the  alleged  errors  of  Scripture 
are  in  non-essentials  alone,  we  humbly 
challenge  the  right  of  any  one  to  draw  a 
line  in  Scripture  between  the  things 
which  are  important  enough  to  be  true 
and  those  which  are  trivial  enough  to  be 
false  or  true  as  the  case  may  be.  If  a 
passer-by  were  to  enter  an  apothecary's 
shop  and  thus  insist  on  marking  off  the 
essentials  from  the  non-essentials  among 
the  materia  medica  he  would  be  ousted 
for  his  pains.  But  the  disparity  between 
God  and  our  wisest  philosopher  is  so 
much  greater  than  that  which  separates 
the  apothecary  from  his  presumptuous 
visitor  that  our  imagination  breaks  down 
in  its  endeavor  to  surmise  what  the  di- 
vine opinion  of  such  "  advanced  scholar- 
ship "  must  be. 

All  such  difficulties,  however,  are  re- 
moved  by  simply   taking    Jesus   at   his 


128  The  Scriptures 

word.  He  was  accustomed  to  say  what 
he  meant  and  the  safe  way  is  to  assume 
that  he  meant  precisely  what  he  said. 
The  best  aids  to  exegesis,  in  the  long  run, 
are  not  ingenuity  and  cleverness  but 
honesty  and  common  sense. 

(2).  He  affirmed  Inspiration  and  left  no 
reasonable  doubt  as  to  what  he  meant  by 
it.  Not  long  ago  it  was  publicly  an- 
nounced that  one  of  Rubens'  pictures 
was  for  sale  in  a  Fifth  Avenue  gallery. 
On  my  way  there  I  met  a  man  expert  in 
art  matters,  who  said  :  "  A  Rubens,  for- 
sooth !  It  is  a  counterfeit ;  there  is  not 
a  trace  of  Rubens  in  it."  Whereupon  I 
turned  back.  What  did  I  care  for  a 
Rubens  that  Rubens  never  saw  ?  Every- 
thing depends  upon  the  authenticity  of 
the  signature.  Anybody  can  write  a 
check  and  sign  it  "Rothschild";  but 
the  trouble  is,  where  is  the  banker  who 
would  cash  it  ?  The  question  is  this,  Is 
the  Bible  what  it  purports  to  be  ?  Is  it  a 
genuine    autograph,    bearing    the    true 


Specific  Teaching  129 

sign-manual  of  the  living  God  ?  Let  us 
have  the  pros  and  cons,  and  weigh  them 
all.  We  can  only  come  to  one  of 
two  conclusions :  it  is  divinely  given,  or 
it  is  not.  If  it  came  from  God,  it  can  be 
absolutely  depended  on ;  if  not,  my 
special  interest  in  the  book  ends,  here 
and  now.  It  is  no  more  to  me  hence- 
forth than  any  other  of  the  important 
works  of  literature.  If,  however,  it  is 
God-breathed,  and  therefore  true  and 
trustworthy,  I  am  ready  to  receive  it  as 
my  infallible  rule  of  faith  and  practice. 
I  will  henceforth  take  its  statement  as  the 
last  word  respecting  my  creed  and  con- 
duct. 

But  what  does  Inspiration  mean  ? 
The  words  of  Jesus,  as  recorded  in 
Mark  xii.  36,  are  in  evidence :  "  For 
David  himself  said  in  the  Holy  Spirit, 
The  Lord  said  unto  my  Lord,  Sit  thou 
on  my  right  hand,  till  I  make  thine  en- 
emies the  footstool  of  thy  feet."  Here 
is  a  clear  reference  to  that  singular  influ- 


130  The  Scriptures 

ence  of  the  Spirit  on  the  minds  of  the 
sacred  writers  which  produced  the  Book 
called  "The  Word  of  God." 

We  are  sometimes  advised  by  interested 
parties  that  the  Biblical  controversy  is 
"a  mere  quarrel  about  definitions." 
Nothing  of  the  sort ;  but,  suppose  it 
were,  are  not  definitions  worth  while  ? 
And  particularly  the  definition  of  inspira- 
tion ;  since  the  whole  question  of  the 
trustworthiness  of  the  Scriptures  rests 
upon  it  ?  At  this  point,  fortunately,  all 
doubt  is  resolved  by  the  fact  that  the 
Scriptures  furnish  their  own  definition 
and  that  Christ  approves  it. 

The  word  "  inspiration  "  is  used  in 
Paul's  second  Epistle  to  Timothy  where 
he  writes  "  Every  scripture  inspired  of 
God,  is  also  profitable  for  teaching,  for 
reproof,  for  correction,  for  instruction, 
which  is  in  righteousness,  that  the  man  of 
God  may  be  complete,  furnished  com- 
pletely unto  every  good  work  "  (II  Tim. 
iii.   16,   17).     The   word   here   rendered 


Specific  Teaching  131 

"inspired"  is  theopnustos  (®€07n>vcrros), 
literally  "  breathed  of  God." 

The  inspiration  of  the  Scriptures,  thus 
denned  by  the  Scriptures  themselves  as  a 
divine  in-breathing,  is  of  a  singular  and 
exclusive  sort,  and  must  be  clearly  dis- 
tinguished from  other  forms  of  so-called 
"  inspiration."  (1)  It  is  not  human  rea- 
son, which  is  a  generic  gift.  "  And  God 
breathed  into  his  nostrils  the  breath  of 
life ;  and  man  became  a  living  soul " 
(Genesis  ii.  7),  that  is,  divinely  quick- 
ened and,  above  all  other  creatures,  in 
possession  of  the  power  to  grasp  spiritual 
things  and  commune  with  his  Creator. 

(2)  Not  genius,  which  is  an  inborn  gift, 
and  may  be  used  for  good  or  evil. 
There  have  been  gloriously  gifted  ones 
who  used  their  power  as  did  the  red 
dragon  in  the  Apocalypse,  drawing  after 
it  one-third  of  the  stars  of  heaven  to  hurl 
them     down    into     the     endless    night. 

(3)  Not  spiritual  illumination,  which  is 
the  privilege  of  all  believers.     Its  pur- 


132  The  Scriptures 

pose  is  personal  holiness.  It  is  indeed  a 
divine  in-breathing  (Ezekielxxxvii.  9),  by 
which  the  soul,  being  quickened,  is  built 
up  in  character  and  continually  made 
more  and  more  alive  unto  God.  (4)  The 
inspiration  here  referred  to,  in  connec- 
tion with  the  composition  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, may  be  thus  denned :  It  is  a 
spiritual  influence  qualifying  and  moving 
certain  persons  to  communicate  divine 
truth  infallibly. 

Now  going  back  to  Christ's  reference 
to  Psalm  ex.  we  hear  him  affirming  that 
David  said  a  certain  thing  "  in  the  Holy 
Spirit,"  which  is  a  clear  statement  of  the 
method  indicated  in  theopnustia  or  in- 
spiration. The  men  who  "  spake  from 
God,  being  moved  by  the  Holy  Spirit 
(II  Pet.  i.  21),  were  so  inspired  that  God 
breathed  through  them  in  communicat- 
ing truth.* 

*  On  another  occasion  we  hear  him  saying  to  his  dis- 
ciples, "  And  when  they  bring  you  before  the  synagogues,  and 
the  rulers,  and  the  authorities,  be  not  anxious  how  or  what 
ye  shall  answer,  or  what  ye  shall  say:  for  the  Holy  Spirit 


Specific   Teaching  133 

The  question  which  Jesus  here  ad- 
dressed to  his  adversaries  with  reference 
to  Psalm  ex.  is  one  that  might  profitably 
engage  the  attention  of  those  who,  while 
professing  to  believe  in  Christ,  deny  the 
singular  and  entire  inspiration  of  the 
Scriptures :  "  How  then  doth  David  in 
the  Spirit  call  him  Lord  saying,  The 
Lord  said  unto  my  Lord,  Sit  thou  on  my 
right  hand,  till  I  put  thine  enemies  under- 
neath thy  feet?"  Is  there  anything  in 
the  diluted  theories  of  "  inspiration " 
which  can  answer  that  question  ?  If  it 
were  propounded  to  David  himself  his 
reply  would  probably  be  something  like 
this,  "I,  being  under  the  influence  of 
the  Spirit,  heard  Jehovah  say  to  my  Son, 
'  Sit  thou  on  my  right  hand  till  I  put 
thine  enemies  underneath  thy  feet.'  I 
saw  him  place  the  rod  of  divine  authority 
in  his  hand,  saying,  '  Rule  thou  in  the 

shall  teach  you  in  that  very  hour  what  ye  ought  to  say " 
(Luke  xii.  II,  12).  This  is  inspiration  as  Christ  taught  it 
and  as  his  people  are  to  understand  it. 


134  The  Scriptures 

midst  of  thine  enemies.'  I  saw  a  great 
company  of  soldiers  gather  at  his  com- 
mand, not  as  mercenaries  but  willing  in 
the  day  of  his  power,  ten  thousand  times 
ten  thousand  and  thousand  of  thousands 
like  dewdrops  from  the  womb  of  the 
morning.  I  saw  Jehovah  lift  his  hand 
and  heard  him  swear,  '  Thou  art  a  priest 
forever,  after  the  order  of  Melchizedek.' 
And  to  me  he  said,  '  The  Lord  at  thy 
hand  shall  strike  through  kings  in  the 
day  of  his  indignation.'  All  this  I  saw 
and  heard  when  in  the  Spirit ;  and  more 
I  know  not." 

One  thing  is  clear :  when  Jesus  re- 
ferred to  the  Scriptures  as  written  by 
men  under  the  influence  of  the  Spirit  he 
separated  those  scriptures  generically 
from  all  other  "  literature  "  whatsoever. 
To  his  mind,  the  inspiration  of  these 
writers  was  a  singular  sort  of  inspiration, 
which  produced  a  singular  book.  In  his 
teaching  it  is  presented  as  the  one  book 
having    authority.      The  "  traditions   of 


Specific  Teaching  135 

the  elders,"  which  were  popularly  asso- 
ciated with  the  Scriptures,  were  not  in- 
frequently mentioned  by  him  but  always 
with  the  purpose  of  discrediting  their 
equally  binding  force.  As  when  he 
said,  "Ye  reject  *  the  commandment 
of  God,  that  ye  may  keep  your  tradi- 
tion"  (Mark  vii.  9).  Thus  the  Bible 
was  to  him  sui  generis,  literally  ;  and 
inspiration,  as  he  taught  it,  was  some- 
thing which  belonged  not  to  literature 
generally  but  to  one  book  only,  namely, 
the  Word  of  God. 

(3).  He  a  finned  that  the  Scriptures  are 
the  medium  of  spiritual  life.  So  far  as  the 
present  inquiry  goes  it  makes  no  differ- 
ence whether  the  words  of  Jesus  re- 
corded in  John  v.  39  be  rendered 
"  Search  "  or  "  Ye  search  the  Scriptures." 
In  the  original  the  imperative  and  in- 
dicative are  identical  in  form.  For  the 
former  rendering  we  have  the  authority 
of  Augustine,  Chrysostom,  Calvin,  Mar- 

*  Margin,  "  frustrate." 


136  The  Scriptures 

tin  Luther,  the  Greek  fathers  generally, 
and  the  King  James  Version.  On  the 
other  side  are  Beza,  Bengel,  Erasmus 
and  the  Revised  Versions.  But  there 
need  be  no  battle  royal  over  the  matter, 
since  the  meaning  is  practically  the  same 
either  way.  Our  Lord  was  speaking  to 
the  Jewish  savants,  who  cavilled  at  his  di- 
vinity. He  called  the  Scriptures  to  wit- 
ness that  he  was  the  very  Son  of  God. 
"Search  them,"  he  said,  "and  see." 
Search  them  indeed  !  That  was  distinc- 
tively the  business  of  these  men.  They 
were  Bibliolaters.  They  scrutinized 
with  the  utmost  care  the  letter  of 
holy  writ ;  they  counted  its  syllables ; 
they  weighed  the  relative  merit  of 
its  precepts ;  they  analyzed  and  class- 
ified it ;  they  treated  it  as  a  fetich,  de- 
clining to  touch  it  with  unwashed  hands. 
"  Search  it  indeed  !  We  are  the  Biblical 
inquisitors."  "Aye,"  said  the  Master, 
"  ye  do  search  it,  but  in  your  devotion 
to  its  letter  ye  lose  the  spirit  of  it.     Ye 


Specific  Teaching  137 

do  search  the  Scriptures,  for  in  them  ye 
think  ye  have  eternal  life.  And,  behold, 
these  are  they  which  testify  of  me.  Yet, 
strange  to  tell,  ye  will  not  come  unto  me 
for  that  eternal  life  ye  seek.  Thus  ye 
miss  the  deep  meaning  and  glory  of 
the  divine  Word  !  " 

One  thing  is  very  clear  :  our  Lord  un- 
reservedly approves  the  object  of  the 
quest.  He  distinctly  intimates  to  these 
Jews  that  they  were  right  in  searching 
the  Scriptures  for  life.  He  says  that  the 
life  is  there  if  they  can  only  find  it ;  and 
that  they  can  find  it  by  finding  him  in 
the  Book,  because  he  himself  is  the  life 
and  the  Book  is  full  of  him.  He  tells 
them  that  they  cannot  pursue  their  quest 
too  earnestly;  the  word  for  "  search" 
being  ipavuare,  which  is  commonly  used 
of  a  hound  on  the  scent.  In  one  of 
iEsop's  fables  he  tells  of  a  hound  which 
was  pursuing  a  hare,  falling  behind,  and 
at  length  abandoning  the  chase.  A 
goatherd  who  was  passing  by,  jeered  at 


138  The  Scriptures 

the  hound,  saying,  "  Shame  that  a  hare 
should  get  the  better  of  thee."  "  But 
you  forget,"  the  hound  replied,  "  that  it 
is  one  thing  to  be  running  for  your  din- 
ner, and  another  to  be  running  for  your 
life."  The  deep  longing  of  every  earnest 
soul  is  for  eternal  life.  The  young  ruler 
who  threw  himself  before  the  Master's 
feet  intensely  desired  this :  "  Good 
Master,  what  shall  I  do  that  I  may  in- 
herit eternal  life  ? "  The  man  who,  in 
the  allegory,  fled  from  the  City  of  De- 
struction, thrust  his  fingers  into  his  ears, 
lest  he  should  be  turned  aside  by  the 
appeals  of  friends  and  kinsfolk,  and  ran, 
crying,  "Life!  Life!  Eternal  Life!" 
We  were  made  in  the  likeness  of  God. 
There  is  something  beyond  and  beneath 
the  surface  of  things.  Our  spiritual  na- 
ture craves  something  better  than  the 
world  can  give.  The  Bible  holds  the 
clew  of  the  maze,  and  the  earnestness  of 
our  search  of  the  Scriptures  will  be  meas- 


Specific  Teaching  139 

ured  by  the  sincerity  of  our  longing  for 
life. 

If  these  things  are  so  it  is  of  immense 
importance  that  a  man  should  preserve 
his  confidence  in  the  Scriptures.  It  is 
true,  they  need  no  defence.  They  are 
in  no  danger ;  but  men  are  in  danger  of 
losing  their  faith  in  them.  It  was  a  sor- 
rowful day  for  Nero  when  he  lost  con- 
fidence in  Seneca,  his  tutor.  In  his 
boyhood  he  had  learned  to  love  the 
old  philosopher  and,  for  a  time,  duti- 
fully followed  his  teachings.  But  there 
were  those  among  his  associates  who 
laughed  at  Seneca's  melancholy  face  and 
pointed  their  fingers  at  his  scholar's 
robe.  Nero  continued  to  love  him  and 
entertained  him  at  the  royal  table ;  but 
he  ceased  to  heed  his  instructions.  It 
is  to  be  feared  that  some  professing 
Christians  regard  their  Bibles  in  the 
same  way.  They  love  them  still,  but 
there  is  a  waning  of  confidence.  Never- 
theless, though  they  make  shipwreck  of 


140  The  Scriptures 

their  faith,  the  Book  stands  true.  The 
life  is  there,  though  they  may  lose  it. 

(4)  He  affirmed,  in  particular,  the  truth  of 
those  portions  of  Scripture  which  are  most 
discredited  in  certain  quarters  in  these  days. 

The  Creation  of  Man.  To  the  Phari- 
sees who  questioned  him  as  to  the  mar- 
riage relation  he  said,  "  Have  ye  not  read, 
that  he  who  made  them  from  the  begin- 
ning made  them  male  and  female  " 
(Matt.  xix.  4).  This  is  a  clear  approval 
of  the  inspired  account  of  the  origin  of 
the  race.  Jesus  evidently  did  not  believe 
that  "  Adam  was  a  myth."  If  the  record 
in  Genesis  is  not  correct,  either  this  di- 
vine Teacher  did  not  know  it  or  did  not 
wish  his  hearers  to  know  it.* 

*  The  attitude  of  Sir  William  Dawson  toward  the  Genesis 
record  was  precisely  that  of  Jesus :  he  said,  "  I  know  nothing 
about  the  origin  of  man  save  what  the  Bible  says  about  it, 
namely  that  God  created  him  ;  and  I  do  not  know  any  one 
who  does."  ....  Lord  Kelvin,  also:  "Mathematics  and 
dynamics  fail  us  when  we  contemplate  the  earth  fitted  for  life 
but  lifeless,  and  try  to  imagine  the  commencement  of  life  upon 
it.  This  certainly  did  not  take  place  by  any  action  of  chem- 
istry or  electricity,  or  crystalline  grouping  of  molecules  under 


Specific   Teaching  141 

The  Story  of  Cain  and  Abel.  This  is 
commonly  regarded  by  the  destructive 
critics  as  purely  legendary  or  allegorical ; 
but  Christ  referred  to  "the  blood  of 
Abel  the  righteous "  (Matt,  xxiii.  35) 
precisely  as  if  he  believed  it. 

The  Flood.  In  the  discussion  as  to 
whether  the  Scriptural  account  of  the 
Flood  is  correct  or  not,  scientists  have 
generally  conceded  its  substantial  accu- 
racy as  proven  by  geology  but  the  de- 
structive critics  are  as  a  body  arrayed 
against  it.  Jesus  referred  to  it  on  this 
wise  :  "  As  were  the  days  of  Noah,  so 
shall  be  the  coming  of  the  Son  of  man. 
For  as  in  those  days  which  were  before 
the  flood  they  were  eating  and  drinking, 
marrying  and  giving  in  marriage,  until 
the  day  that  Noah  entered  into  the  ark, 
and  they  knew  not  until  the  flood  came, 
and  took  them  all  away ;  so  shall  be  the 

the  influence  of  force,  or  by  any  possible  kind  of  fortuitous 
concourse  of  atoms.  We  must  pause,  face  to  face  with  the 
mystery  and  miracle  of  the  creation  of  living  creatures." 


142  The  Scriptures 

coming  of  the  Son  of  man  "  (Matt.  xxiv. 
37-39). 

The  Historicity  of  the  Patriarchs.     The 
leaders  of  the  anti-Biblical  school  of  criti- 
cism are  practically  agreed  that  Abraham, 
Isaac  and  Jacob   were    legendary   char- 
acters ;  but  Jesus  held  the  opposite  view. 
In   speaking  of  the  resurrection   of  the 
dead  he  said,   "  Have  ye  not  read  that 
which  was  spoken    unto    you  by  God, 
saying,  I  am  the  God  of  Abraham,  and  the 
God  of  Isaac,  and   the   God   of  Jacob  ? " 
(Matt.  xxii.  31,  32).     To  say  that  he  re- 
ferred in  such  language  to  men  who  had 
not  only  succumbed  to   death   but  had 
never  really  existed  is  simply  to  stultify 
him.     And  again,  "  I  say  unto  you,  that 
many  shall  come  from  the   east  and  the 
west,  and  shall  sit  down  with  Abraham, 
and  Isaac,  and  Jacob,  in  the  kingdom  of 
heaven  "  (Matt.   viii.    11).     And   on  an- 
other occasion  he  said  to    the  cavilling 
Jews,   "  Your  father  Abraham    rejoiced 
to  see  my  day ;  and  he  saw  it,  and  was 


Specific  Teaching  143 

glad."  And  when  they  said,  "Thou 
art  not  yet  fifty  years  old,  and  hast  thou 
seen  Abraham?"  he  answered,  "Verily, 
verily,  I  say  unto  you,  Before  Abraham 
was  born,  I  am  "  (John  viii.  56-58). 

The  Destructio?i  of  Sodom.  It  is  agreed 
on  all  hands,  among  the  radical  critics, 
that  there  was  no  historic  basis  for  this 
"fable."  Nevertheless  Jesus  said,  "In 
the  days  of  Lot  they  ate,  they  drank, 
they  bought,  they  sold,  they  planted,  they 
builded  ;  but  in  the  day  that  Lot  went 
out  from  Sodom  it  rained  fire  and  brim- 
stone from  heaven,  and  destroyed  them 
all "  (Luke  xvii.  28,  29). 

Lot's  Wife.  The  story  of  this  poor 
woman  has  been  laughed  out  of  court 
by  many  "advanced  scholars"  who  pro- 
fess an  intense  devotion  to  Christ.  But 
Christ  used  her  tragic  death  as  a  warning 
to  the  half-hearted  (Luke  xvii.  32).  It 
does  not  seem  to  have  occurred  to  him 
that  there  was  no  truth  in  it. 

The     Exodus.      Kuenen     says,    "  The 


144  The  Scriptures 

Exodus,  the  passage  of  the  Jordan,  the 
wandering  and  the  settlement  in  Canaan, 
as  they  are  described,  are  simply  impos- 
sible ;  "  and  the  destructive  critics  of 
whom  he  is  the  distinguished  leader  agree 
with  him.  So  did  not  Jesus.  He  men- 
tioned with  approval  many  of  the  events 
connected  with  it.  (a)  The  Call  of 
Moses  at  the  Burning  Bush  (Luke  xx. 
37-38).  {b)  The  Passover  (Luke  xxii. 
15,  16).  (c)  The  Manna  :  "  Your  fathers 
ate  the  manna  in  the  wilderness  "  (John 
vi.  49).  (d)  The  Brazen  Serpent  (John 
iii.  14). 

The  Pentateuch  as  a  Whole.  It  was  to 
"  the  five  books  of  Moses  " — known 
among  the  Jews  and  accepted  in  like 
manner  by  the  Samaritans  as  "  The 
Law " — that  he  referred  in  the  solemn 
words,  "  If  ye  believed  Moses,  ye  would 
believe  me ;  for  he  wrote  of  me.  But 
if  ye  believe  not  his  writings,  how  shall 
ye  believe  my  words  ? "  (John  v.  46,  47). 
This  is  in  striking  contrast  with  the  as- 


Specific   Teaching  145 

sertion  of  Kuenen,  "  All  this  representa- 
tion in  the  Hexateuch  is  absurd;  "  or  of 
Wellhausen,  "It  is  full  of  historical  fic- 
tions ;  "  *  or  of  Holzinger,  "  Its  historical 
presuppositions  of  the  giving  of  the  Law 
are  whimsies  that  force  a  smile  ;  "  f  or  of 
Smend,  *  The  representation  of  the 
Pentateuch  proves  itself  not  historical ;  "  % 
or  of  Piebenbring,  "  The  Priest  Code, 
the  heart  of  the  Pentateuch,  is  legend, 
myth,  saga,  tradition,  and  not  trustworthy, 
a  proved  historical  fiction,  bald,  trans- 
parent fiction,  artifice,  fantasy,  false  his- 
tory, absurd,  impossible,  contradictory, 
inconceivable,  unthinkable  and  false,  a 
bare-faced  invention."  §  Is  it  not  clear 
that  between  Christ  and  such  criticism 
there  is  a  bridgeless  gulf  ;  and  that  a  true 
Christian  will  scarcely  undertake  the  dif- 
ficult feat  of  standing  either  midway  or 
on  both  sides  of  it  ? 

*  Wellhausen's  "  History  of  Israel." 
t  Holzinger's  "  Introduction  to  the  Hexateuch." 
X  Smend's  "  history  of  Old  Testament  Religion." 
§  Piebenbring's  "  Theology  of  the  Old  Testament." 

J 


146  The  Scriptures 

The  Authorship  of  the  Pentateuch.  It  is 
frequently  said  that  it  "  makes  no  differ- 
ence who  wrote  the  books  of  the  Bible  so 
long  as  they  are  true."  This  is  correct, 
except  when  such  authorship  is  desig- 
nated in  the  books  themselves  or  when 
Christ  definitely  states  it.  Now  it  so 
happens  that  Christ  directly  or  indirectly 
ascribes  the  authorship  of  the  Pentateuch 
to  Moses  no  less  than  ten  times  (Matt. 
xix.  7,  8  ;  xxiii.  2  ;  Mark  x.  3  ;  Luke  xvi. 
29,  31 ;  xxiv.  27 ;  John  v.  45,  46,  vii.  19, 
23).  In  this  the  destructive  critics,  with 
one  accord,  take  issue  with  him.* 

*  Dr.  Henry  Van  Dyke  of  Princeton,  in  a  Lecture  on 
"  Egypt  in  the  Bible,"  in  which  he  gives  special  attention  to 
archaeological  research  in  its  bearing  on  the  authorship  of  the 
Pentateuch,  reaches  this  conclusion :  "  What,  then,  shall  we 
think  of  the  origin  of  this  account,  as  we  read  it  in  the  light 
of  these  discoveries  ?  Is  it  likely  to  be  the  invention  of  a 
later  age,  a  fiction  constructed  by  some  clever  priest  many 
centuries  after  Israel  had  come  out  of  Egypt,  or,  perhaps  (to 
use  a  Hibernicism,  for  the  sake  of  brevity),  many  centuries 
after  Israel  had  never  been  there  ?  Such  a  supposition  would 
involve  two  miracles.  First,  the  possession  by  the  supposed 
novelist  of  an  utterly  abnormal  literary  skill ;  and,  second,  a 
preternatural  foreknowledge  of  the  archaeological  discoveries 


Specific  Teaching  147 

Deuteronomy.  If  this  book  was  writ- 
ten at  the  time  and  in  the  manner  sug- 
gested by  Ewald  and  others  of  his  way 
of  thinking,  it  is  simply  a  bold  forgery, 
unworthy  of  a  moment's  credence  or 
consideration.  That  Christ  had  no 
sympathy  with  their  views  is  evident  from 
the  fact  that  in  his  temptation  in  the 
wilderness  (Matt.  iv.  1-11),  needing 
three  arrows,  he  plucked  them  all  from 

which  have  actually  been  reserved  for  the  present  century  to 
make." 

"  It  certainly  seems  more  natural,  more  reasonable,  to  sup- 
pose that  this  story  of  the  patriarchs  in  Egypt  is  substantially 
the  work  of  a  man  who,  while  he  was  himself  a  Hebrew — 
as  the  tone  of  the  narrative  shows — was  at  the  same 
time  learned  in  all  the  learning  of  the  Egyptians  ;  one  who 
was  familiar  with  the  ancient  customs  and  observances  of 
both  races  ;  one  who  possessed  a  vivid  knowledge  of  manners 
and  of  events  which  were  subsequently  lost  for  many  centu- 
ries in  the  gloom  of  oblivion ;  and  one  (as  we  may  infer  from 
certain  indications  which  I  have  not  time  to  mention)  who 
lived  not  earlier  than  the  nineteenth  Egyptian  dynasty.  Such 
a  man  was  Moses.  And  there  is  no  reason  under  the  heavens, 
nor  upon  the  earth,  nor  has  any  reason  yet  been  discovered 
under  the  earth,  why  we  should  not  think  that  the  substance 
and  much  of  the  actual  language  of  this  ancient  narrative 
come  to  us  from  the  hand  of  Moses." 


148  The  Scriptures 

this  quiver :  "  It  is  written,  Man  shall 
not  live  by  bread  alone  but  by  every 
word  that  proceedeth  out  of  the  mouth 
of  God"  (Deut.  viii.  3)  ;  "  It  is  written 
again,  Thou  shalt  not  make  trial  of  the 
Lord  thy  God  (Deut.  vi.  16);  "It  is 
written,  Thou  shalt  worship  the  Lord 
thy  God,  and  him  only  shalt  thou  serve  " 
(Deut.  vi.  13). 

Prophecy.  In  view  of  the  fact  that  the 
supernatural  factor  is  wholly  eliminated 
from  prophecy  by  the  destructive  critics 
it  may  be  well  to  observe  that  the  invari- 
able teaching  of  Jesus  was  just  the  re- 
verse. He  rang  the  changes  on  the 
word  "  fulfilled  "  and  honored  the  proph- 
ets whenever  he  mentioned  them. 
The  connection  of  Elijah  with  the 
Samaritan  famine  and  his  miracle  at 
Sarepta  (Luke  iv.  25,  26)  ;  Elisha  and  the 
Syrian  leper  (Luke  iv.  27) ;  the  destruc- 
tion of  Tyre  and  Sidon  in  pursuance  of 
the  predictions  of  Isaiah,  Jeremiah, 
Ezekiel,  Joel  and   Amos  (Matt.  xi.  20- 


Specific  Teaching  149 

22) ;  the  conversion  of  Nineveh  under  the 
preaching  of  Jonah  (Matt.  xii.  41) ; 
Malachi's  prophecy  of  John  the  Baptist 
(Matt.  xi.  10  cf.  Mai.  iii.  1)  ;  the  chain 
of  Messianic  prediction  running  through 
"all  the  Scriptures"  (John  v.  39,  also 
Luke  xxiv.  27)  ;  the  lurid  foregleams  of 
the  end  of  the  world  (Luke  xxi.  22),  in- 
cluding those  of  Daniel,  the  most  sav- 
agely discredited  of  all  the  prophets  by 
modern  rationalistic  critics  (Matt.  xxiv. 
15) ;  these  and  other  like  references  of 
Jesus  to  the  prophets  of  the  Old  Economy 
— taken  in  connection  with  the  fact  that 
he  nowhere,  by  word  or  syllable  or 
slightest  suggestion,  intimates  the  con- 
trary— are  incontrovertible  evidence  of 
his  unswerving  faith  in  the  absolute  truth 
and  trustworthiness  of  the  prophecies. 

Jonah  and  the  Great  Fish.  The  Jews 
did  not  deny  the  miracles  of  Jesus. 
There  were  present  in  their  assemblages 
those  whose  sight  had  been  restored, 
whose  leprous    scales  had  been    wiped 


150  The  Scriptures 

away,  whose  palsied  limbs  had  been 
restored.  In  the  face  of  such  witnesses 
there  was  no  room  for  denial  or  doubt. 
The  only  question  was,  Whence  did 
Jesus  derive  the  power  to  work  such 
miracles  ?  Was  it  from  above  or  from 
beneath  ?  The  scribes  and  Pharisees 
intimated  that  it  was  from  Satan.  "  No," 
said  Jesus,  "it  is  divine  power.  I  can 
do  nothing  except  the  Father  be  with 
me.  I  and  my  Father  are  one."  Then 
said  the  scribes  and  Pharisees,  "  Let  us 
see  your  credentials.  If  this  power  be 
from  heaven,  show  us  a  sign  from 
heaven  to  attest  it."  He  answered  on 
this  wise,  "  An  evil  and  adulterous  gen- 
eration seeketh  after  a  sign  ;  and  there 
shall  no  sign  be  given  to  it  but  the  sign 
of  Jonah  the  prophet :  for  as  Jonah  was 
three  days  and  three  nights  in  the  belly 
of  the  whale  ;  so  shall  the  Son  of  man 
be  three  days  and  three  nights  in  the 
heart  of  the  earth  "  (Matt.  xii.  38^0). 
This    was,    indeed,    not    a   sign    "  from 


Specific  Teaching  151 

heaven,"  but  from  earth,  from  the  dark- 
ness of  the  tomb,  from  the  belly  of  hell. 
How  runs  the  record?  "Now  the 
word  of  the  Lord  came  unto  Jonah  the 
son  of  Amittai,  saying,  arise,  go  to 
Nineveh,  that  great  city,  and  cry  against 
it ;  for  their  wickedness  is  come  up  be- 
fore me.  But  Jonah  rose  up  to  flee  unto 
Tarshish  from  the  presence  of  the  Lord  ; 
and  he  went  down  to  Joppa,  and  found 
a  ship  going  to  Tarshish  :  so  he  paid  the 
fare  thereof  and  went  down  into  it,  to 
go  with  them  unto  Tarshish  from  the 
presence  of  the  Lord.  But  the  Lord 
sent  out  a  great  wind  into  the  sea,  and 
there  was  a  mighty  tempest  in  the  sea, 
so  that  the  ship  was  like  to  be  broken. 
Then  the  mariners  took  up  Jonah  and 
cast  him  forth  into  the  sea :  and  the  sea 
ceased  from  her  raging.  And  the  Lord 
prepared  a  great  fish  to  swallow  up 
Jonah  ;  and  Jonah  was  in  the  belly  of 
the  fish  three  days  and  three  nights. 
Then  Jonah  prayed  unto  the  Lord  his 


152  The  Scriptures 

God  out  of  the  fish's  belly.  And  the 
Lord  spake  unto  the  fish,  and  it  vomited 
out  Jonah  upon  the  dry  land."  In  his 
reference  to  this  narrative  our  Lord  did 
not  only  signify  his  assent  to  its  truth, 
but  he  adventured  the  validity  of  his  re- 
demptive work  upon  it.  As  his  resur- 
rection was  to  be  the  seal  of  his  atone- 
ment, so  the  truth  of  the  Jonah  narrative 
was  the  sign  of  his  resurrection.  Had 
he  regarded  it  as  mere  folk-lore,  he 
could  not  have  made  such  use  of  it.  We 
do  not  use  fables  as  guarantees  of  fact. 
Try  it  in  a  court  of  justice.  "  As  surely  as 
Jason  sought  and  found  the  Golden 
Fleece,  so  surely  will  I  tell  the  truth." 
That  would  scarcely  answer.  You 
must  certify  by  an  indubitable  fact  like 
this :  As  surely  as  there  is  a  God  in 
heaven  I  will  tell  the  truth  !  Or  try  it 
in  a  common  matter  like  the  contract  for 
a  debt ;  make  out  your  note  on  this 
wise:  "By  the  sign  of  Jack  and  the 
Beanstalk,  or  of  Cinderella  and  her  Crys- 


Specific  Teaching  153 

tal  Slipper,  I  promise  to  pay  when  this 
obligation  falls  due."  Does  this  seem 
preposterous  ?  It  is  not  a  whit  more 
preposterous  than  to  allege  that  Jesus 
referred  to  the  "  fable  "  of  Jonah  when 
called  upon  to  produce  a  sign  in  verifi- 
cation of  his  own  claims  as  the  only  be- 
gotten Son  of  God. 

Is  it  not  a  remarkable  fact,  as  shown 
by  the  foregoing,  that  the  very  portions 
of  Scripture  which  have  been  most  vig- 
orously assailed  and  held  up  to  ridicule 
by  destructive  critics  are  those  which 
Jesus  marked  with  his  authoritative  seal 
of  approval  ?  Verily,  it  looks  as  if  he 
anticipated  the  things  that  are  happen- 
ing in  these  days !  And  in  a  clash  of 
opinion  between  Jesus,  as  the  champion 
of  the  divine  Word,  and  all  who  oppose 
it,  there  is  no  room  for  hesitation  on 
the  part  of  those  who  sincerely  follow 
him.  They  will  be  found  standing  with 
him. 

(5)  He  affirmed  that  the  Scriptures  are 


154  The  Scriptures 

complete,  sufficient  and  ultimate  in  all  mat- 
ters touching  the spiritual life '(Luke  xvi.  31). 
In  one  of  the  cities  of  Cesarea  Philippi 
there  were  six  brothers,  well-to-do  gentle- 
man— eminently  respectable  men.  They 
attended  to  their  own  affairs.  They 
probably  paid  their  debts,  obeyed  the 
laws,  and  dealt  justly  with  their  fellow- 
men.  This  was  the  sum  total  of  duty  as 
they  apprehended  it.  As  to  spiritual 
things  they  were  non-committal.  They 
said,  "  You  tell  us  about  God  and  immor- 
tality and  righteousness  and  judgment  to 
come.  There  may  be  something  in  these 
things,  but  we  have  no  means  of  know- 
ing it.  There  are  some  things  that  we 
can  see  and  handle  with  our  hands.  We 
are  living  in  a  world  of  actual  toil  and 
struggle.  Things  that  pertain  to  this 
present  world  are  real  and  tangible ;  they 
lie  within  the  reach  of  our  finger  tips. 
As  to  things  invisible,  we  know  nothing  ; 
let  them  pass."  So  they  took  no  interest 
in  God  or  religion,  but  lived  purely  sordid 


Specific  Teaching  155 

lives.  That  was  the  worst  that  could  be 
said  about  them.  They  were  not  thieves, 
murderers,  or  adulterers,  but  just  world- 
ings,  that  was  all. 

In  course  of  time  it  happened  that  one 
of  these  brothers  died — died,  and  went 
to  his  own  place,  that  is,  to  the  place  for 
which  his  manner  of  life  has  fitted  him. 
So  it  is  written,  "  In  hell  he  lifted  up  his 
eyes,  being  in  torment."  His  tongue 
was  parched  with  an  unquenchable  thirst 
— a  spiritual  thirst ;  a  vain  longing  for 
possibilities  forever  gone  by.  He  suffered 
like  Tantalus,  who  stood  to  his  lips  in 
clear  water  which  receded  whenever  he 
sought  to  drink.  The  glories  of  heaven 
were  in  view,  but  he  was  shut  out.  He 
had  chosen  to  turn  his  back  on  spiritual 
verities  and  now  he  was  exiled  from 
God.  And  "  there  was  a  great  gulf  fixed  " 
— an  eternal,  bridgeless  gulf.  By  reason 
of  the  fixity  of  his  character  he  could 
never  cross  it.  He  was  in  his  own  place. 
He  had  no  part  in  heaven,  no  fitness  for  it. 


156  The  Scriptures 

In  the  interview  with  Abraham,  of 
which  Jesus  tells,  this  lost  rich  man  makes 
a  strange  request:  "I  pray  thee,  there- 
fore, father,  that  thou  wouldst  send  and 
admonish  my  five  brethren,  lest  they  also 
come  into  this  place."  Here  is  an  im- 
plication that  he,  himself,  had  not  been 
fairly  treated.  Had  he  known  the  dread- 
ful outcome  he  would  never  have  passed 
his  life  in  the  pursuit  of  sordid  things. 
He  would  have  his  brothers  warned  in 
time.  Now  observe  the  reply :  "  It 
would  be  in  vain.  They  have  Moses 
and  the  prophets  ;  if  they  hear  not  them 
neither  will  they  be  persuaded  if  one  rise 
from  the  dead."  For  an  angel  to  bear  a 
message  of  warning  or  of  invitation  to 
those  five  busy  worldings  would  be  in- 
deed love's  labor  lost.  Did  they  not  re- 
ject the  supernatural  ?  Would  they  not 
have  pronounced  the  angelic  visitor  an 
impostor,  an  hallucination  ?  Nor  was 
there  any  common  vocabulary  by  which 
this  angel  could  have  communicated  with 


Specific   Teaching  157 

them.  How  difficult  it  is  to  express  a 
spiritual  fact  in  carnal  terminology  !  Our 
Lord  himself  found  it  no  easy  matter. 
He  denned  God  as  a  Spirit ;  but  what  is 
spirit?  He  could  but  speak  of  heaven 
as  a  house  of  many  mansions ;  our  eyes 
are  so  heavy,  our  ears  so  dull  to  spiritual 
things.  And  what  could  a  celestial  mes- 
senger say  to  these  men  ?  "  Your  brother 
is  in  hell  and  Lazarus  in  the  realms  of 
endless  joy."  Would  they  have  believed 
that  ?  Would  they  not  have  said,  "  What  ? 
Our  respected  brother  Dives  lost,  and 
Lazarus,  that  miserable  beggar,  in  heaven  ? 
Nay,  we  believe  not  a  word  of  it." 

Here  then  is  the  proposition  which 
Jesus  clearly  lays  down,  There  is  no  excuse 
for  unbelief.  The  truth  has  power  to  save. 
Every  man  who  has  the  Scriptures  has  a 
fair  chance.  The  evidence  is  sufficient. 
If  one  believe  not  the  Scriptures  there  is 
nothing  on  earth  or  in  heaven  that  can 
convince  him. 

(6)  He  affirmed  that  the  Scriptures  are  the 


158  The  Scriptures 

potent  and  determining  factor  in  the  propaga- 
tion of  the  gospel  and  the  establishment  of  his 
kingdom  on  earth.  In  the  Parable  of  the 
Sower  (Matt.  xiii.  1-19)  he  sets  forth,  un- 
der the  figure  of  agriculture,  the  restora- 
tion of  the  world  to  God.  In  his  expla- 
nation of  that  parable  (Mark  xiii.  18-23) 
he  says  that  the  good  seed  is  "  the  Word 
of  the  kingdom. ' '  In  the  parallel  passage 
in  Luke  it  is  stated  still  more  explicitly, 
"The  seed  is  the  Word  of  God  "(Luke 
viii.  11). 

The  following  truths  are  involved  in 
this  parable :  First,  The  Word,  like  the 
seed,  has  the  power  of  life.  Second,  The 
Church, — as  represented  by  the  Apostles 
who  gathered  about  Christ, — is  made  the 
custodian  of  the  Word  (cf.  Romans  iii. 
1-2).  Third,  The  Church  is  under  com- 
mission to  "preach  the  Word"  to  the 
uttermost  parts  of  the  earth.  Christ 
preached  the  Word  ;  so  must  we.  This 
is  our  crusade.  "  The  sword  of  the  Spirit 
is  the  Word  of  God."     Fourth,  The  na- 


Specific  Teaching  159 

tions  will  never  be  converted  until  the 
Church,  and  Christian  people  generally, 
follow  the  plan  which  Jesus  so  distinctly 
marked  out.  "The  field  is  the  world  " 
and  "the  seed  is  the  Word  ;  "  and  until 
the  seed  is  planted  in  the  field  there  will 
be  no  universal  harvest.  This  is  what 
Jesus  meant  when  he  said,  "  This  gospel 
of  the  kingdom  shall  be  preached  in  all 
the  world  for  a  testimony  unto  all  the  na- 
tions ;  and  then  shall  the  end  come" 
(Matt.  xxiv.  14).  Fifth,  In  the  meantime 
every  Christian  is  responsible,  up  to  the 
full  measure  of  his  influence,  for  seeing 
that  no  man  anywhere  is  left  in  ignorance 
of  the  Scriptures.  We  cannot  save  others, 
but  we  can  give  them  the  word  which 
has  the  power  of  salvation  in  it  (Heb.  iv. 
12).  The  business  of  a  Christian,  in  this 
particular,  is  set  forth  particularly  in  the 
Parable  of  "  the  scribe  which  is  instructed 
unto  the  kingdom  '  (Matt,  xviii.  52). 
Sixth,  The  promise  of  Jesus  that  "  the 
end  shall  come  "  when  the  Word  is  thus 


160  The  Scriptures 

preached  everywhere,  is  a  clear  corrobo- 
rating echo  of  the  whole  tenor  of  proph- 
ecy. Take  for  example  the  wonderful 
words  of  Isaiah,  "  For  as  the  rain  cometh 
down  and  the  snow  from  heaven,  and  re- 
turned! not  thither,  but  watereth  the 
earth,  and  maketh  it  bring  forth  and  bud, 
and  giveth  seed  to  the  sower  and  bread 
to  the  eater  :  so  shall  my  Word  be 
that  goeth  forth  out  of  my  mouth  :  it 
shall  not  return  unto  me  void,  but  it  shall 
accomplish  that  which  I  please,  and  it 
shall  prosper  in  the  thing  whereto  I  sent 
it  "  (Isaiah  lv.  10-13). 

We  are  not  asked  to  regenerate  the  race. 
That  is  a  divine  prerogative.  But  we 
are  required  to  disseminate  the  Word, 
through  which  God  works  in  saving  men. 
The  Church  shall  not  fulfil  her  obligation 
until  she  has  sent  messengers  to  the  ut- 
termost parts  of  the  earth,  scattering  the 
truths  of  Scripture  as  leaves  of  the  Tree  of 
Life.  God  will  do  the  rest.  His  promise 
is  sure  :  "  Then  shall  the  end  come." 


Specific  Teaching  161 

The  experience  of  the  past  has  proven 
beyond  all  peradventure  that  the  secret 
of  success  in  Evangelization  is  implicit 
faith  in  the  Word.  A  Bible  preacher  is 
a  man  of  power.  A  Bible  preacher  is 
a  successful  fisher  of  men.  Not  long  be- 
fore Mr.  Moody's  death  he  showed  me 
a  petition  signed  by  sixteen  thousand  of 
the  people  of  Australia  and  Tasmania  en- 
treating him  to  come  over  and  "preach 
the  old  Bible  and  the  blood  of  Christ." 
"Ah,"  said  he  "the  old  Book  has  not 
lost  its  power.  Let  them  rail  at  it  and 
revile  it ;  it  stands  as  an  impregnable  rock. 
The  power  of  salvation  is  in  it!"  This 
was  the  secret  of  that  man's  marvelous 
success.  He  sowed  the  Word ;  and 
God,  true  to  his  promise,  blessed  it. 

K 


CHAPTER  IV 

The   Provision   of  jfesus  for    the 
Writing  of  the  New  Testament. 

rHE  Old  Testament — that  is,  the 
Bible  prior  to  the  Advent — stood 
like  a  half-built  temple,  awaiting 
the  coming  of  Christ  to  complete  it. 

But  he  wrote  no  portion  of  the  New 
Testament  with  his  own  hand.  He 
committed  that  work  to  his  disciples  as 
a  sacred  trust  and  gave  them  an  abun- 
dant equipment  for  it.     Observe, 

(a)  A  considerable  portion  of  his  teach- 
ing was  in  merest  outline.     Some  of  the 
most    important    truths    could,    in    the 
162 


The  New  Testament        163 

necessity  of  the  case,  be  only  hinted  at. 
He  said,  "  I  have  yet  many  things  to  say 
unto  you,  but  ye  cannot  bear  them  now  " 
(John  xvi.  12).  His  use  of  parables  is 
thus  explained,  "  And  with  many  such 
parables  spake  he  the  Word  unto  them, 
as  they  were  able  to  hear  it"  (Mark  iv. 
33). 

(b)  He  made  provision  that  such 
teaching  as  must  be  presented  thus  by 
himself  should  subsequently  be  filled  out. 
It  must  be  remembered  that  Jesus  did  not 
profess  to  complete  his  system  of  truth. 
Luke  says  he  only  "  began  to  teach  " 
(Acts  i.  1).  His  words  were  the  substance 
of  a  revelation  which  was  to  be  contin- 
ued, formulated  and  completed  by  cer- 
tain of  his  disciples,  who  were  to  write 
this  further  Scripture  as  they  were  moved 
by  the  Spirit  of  God. 

(c)  To  this  end  he  specially  endued 
them  with  the  Spirit,  and  promised  "  He 
shall  guide  you  into  all  the  truth  "  (John 
xvi.  13) ;  and  again  ;  "  He  shall  teach  you 


164  The  Scriptures 

all  things,  and  bring  to  your  remembrance 
all  that  I  said  unto  you  "  (John  xiv.  26), 
and  again :  "  When  the  Comforter  is 
come,  whom  I  will  send  unto  you  from 
the  Father,  even  the  Spirit  of  truth, 
which  proceedeth  from  the  Father,  he 
shall  bear  witness  of  me  :  and  ye  also  shall 
bear  witness,  because  ye  have  been  with 
me  from  the  beginning  "  (John  xv.  26, 
27).  The  New  Testament  is  simply  the 
recorded  testimony  of  these  "  witnesses." 
It  consists  of  a  fourfold  biography  of 
Christ,  a  brief  history  of  the  Apostolic 
Church,  the  formulation  of  Christ's 
doctrinal  and  ethical  teachings  in  a  series 
of  apostolic  epistles,  and  one  book  of 
prophecy.  The  canon  of  the  New 
Testament,  thus  composed,  has  stood 
unchanged,  issuing  a  challenge,  as  it  were, 
to  the  passing  centuries,  "  Supplement 
me  if  you  can  !  " 

{d)  The  exclusive  bounds  of  the  New 
Testament  are  indicated  by  Christ  in  his 
instruction  and  qualifications  of  the  "  wit- 


The  New  Testament        165 

nesses."  Only  such  persons  were  to 
write  as,  having  been  auditors  and  eye- 
witnesses or  companions  of  such,  were 
specially  qualified,  commissioned  and  re- 
quired thus  to  do  (as  in  Rev.  i.  19)  ;  and 
only  such  writings  could  be  included 
in  the  canon  as  were  produced  in  this 
way. 

(e)  And  upon  these  writings  our  Lord 
placed  the  seal  of  divine  authority  in 
most  explicit  terms,  saying,  "He  that 
heareth  you,  heareth  me  ;  and  he  that 
rejecteth  you  rejecteth  me ;  and  he  that 
rejecteth  me  rejecteth  him  that  sent  me" 
(Luke  x.  16).  Here  is  food  for  reflection 
on  the  part  of  such  as  profess  to  find 
antagonism  between  the  teachings  of 
John  or  Paul  or  James  and  those  of  their 
divine  Lord.  It  is  simply  fatuous  for  a 
professing  Christian  to  say,  "  I  accept 
the  teachings  of  Christ  but  not  those 
of  his  apostles,"  when  Christ  himself 
said,  with  reference  to  their  teach- 
ings,   "  He   that   heareth    you,    heareth 


1 66  The  Scriptures 

me ;  and  he  that  rejecteth  you  rejecteth 
me. 

(/)  If  further  proof  of  Christ's  endorse- 
ment of  the  New  Testament  is  desired, 
we  shall  find  it  in  his  last  impressive 
words,  "  For  I  testify  unto  every  man 
that  heareth  the  words  of  the  prophecy 
of  this  book,  If  any  man  shall  add  unto 
them,  God  shall  add  unto  him  the  plagues 
which  are  written  in  this  book :  and  if 
any  man  shall  take  away  from  the  words 
of  the  book  of  this  prophecy,  God  shall 
take  away  his  part  from  the  tree  of  life, 
and  out  of  the  holy  city,  which  are  writ- 
ten in  this  book  "  (Rev.  xxii.  18,  19).  It 
is  not  a  matter  of  vital  moment  whether 
this  solemn  admonition  refers  to  the  en- 
tire volume  of  Scripture  or  only  to  the 
Book  of  the  Revelation  of  St.  John ; 
since  in  any  case  it  indicates  the  mind  of 
the  Master  respecting  the  inviolable  sanc- 
tity of  Holy  Writ.  If  the  words  mean 
anything,  they  mean  that  the  Book  is 
not  to    be  irreverently  tampered  with, 


The  New  Testament        167 

added  to  or  subtracted  from  at  pleasure, 
or  treated  in  any  wise  except  as  a  full  and 
complete,  inspired  and  authoritative  rec- 
ord of  the  divine  mind  and  will  concern- 
ing men. 


CHAPTER  V 

The  Silence  of  Jesus  as  to  Alleged 
Errors  of  the  Scriptures. 

/T  is  a  little  thing  to  say  of  Jesus  that  he 
was  an  honest  man.  And  yet  there  is 
much  in  that;  for  "an  honest  man's 
the  noblest  work  of  God."  Moreover, 
there  is  nothing  so  rare.  The  rule  among 
men  is  to  wear  masks  and  disguises.  Not 
one  of  us  would  be  willing  to  have  a  win- 
dow in  his  breast  through  which  our 
neighbors  might  see  the  secret  imagina- 
tions of  our  hearts. 

An  honest  man  is  a  two-sided  man ; 
that  is,  his  silence  is  as  honest  as  his  speech. 
168 


Alleged  Errors  169 

It  is  customary  in  Siam  to  punish  an  in- 
corrigible falsifier  by  sewing  up  his  lips. 
But  the  cure  is  inadequate  ;  for  a  lie  may 
be  told  by  the  lifting  of  the  eyebrows,  or 
the  pointing  of  a  finger.  It  is  possible 
"  to  convey  a  libel  with  a  frown,  or  wink 
a  reputation  down. "  Indeed,  a  falsehood 
may  be  told  by  making  no  motion  at  all. 
A  gossip  comes  to  you  with  a  scandalous 
story  which  you  have  reason  to  believe 
is  false  ;  in  common  honesty  you  should 
make  an  indignant  denial,  but  you  utter 
not  a  word.  Speak  up,  man  !  Silence 
gives  consent.  Silence  is  a  liar,  a  slan- 
derer, a  forsworn  enemy  to  friendship 
and  truth  and  righteousness. 

Let  us  say,  then,  that  Jesus,  the  divine 
Teacher,  was  absolutely  honest.  There 
was  no  guile  on  his  lips ;  there  was  no 
guile  in  his  heart.  His  life  was  as  trans- 
parent as  his  utterance  ;  his  silence  was 
as  candid  as  his  speech. 

There  are  those  who  insist  upon  hav- 
ing no  creed  save  the  teachings  of  Christ. 


170  The  Scriptures 

If  that  statement  may  be  accepted  in  its 
full  significance,  we  shall  not  dissent  from 
it.  The  teachings  of  our  Lord  had  to 
do  with  all  the  great  problems  and  veri- 
ties of  the  endless  life.  But  when  we 
speak  of  his  teachings,  we  must  be  per- 
mitted to  include  his  eloquent  silence. 
For  in  many  ways  his  silence  was  more 
significant  than  his  words.  He  found 
his  disciples  in  possession  of  certain  views 
respecting  truth,  of  which,  had  they  been 
false,  it  was  his  simple  duty  as  an  honest 
Master  to  dispossess  them.  It  is  with  this 
consideration  in  mind  that  we  turn  our 
attention  now  to  his  assurance,  "  If  it 
were  not  so,  I  would  have  told  you  " 
(John  xiv.  2). 

(1)  With  referejice  to  himself.  The 
world  had  been  looking  for  the  coming 
of  Christ.  This  feeling  of  expectancy 
was  universal,  but  the  Jews  in  particular 
were  on  the  qui  vive.  The  coming  of 
Messiah  was  spoken  of  as  "The  Consola- 
tion of  Israel."     They  had  been  led  by 


Alleged  Errors  171 

their  prophets  from  time  immemorial  to 
believe  that  in  the  fulness  of  time  one 
would  appear  who  should  restore  the 
glory  of  their  nation.  His  nature  and 
character  were  predicted  in  minute  de- 
tail. This  was  "The  Hope  of  Israel." 
The  disciples  of  Jesus  as  Jews  shared  in 
the  common  expectancy.  In  their  famil- 
iar intercourse  with  Jesus,  listening  to  his 
sermons  and  beholding  his  wonderful 
works,  they  came  to  believe  that  he  was 
the  long-expected  Christ.  Let  it  be  ob- 
served, that  he  permitted  them  to  enter- 
tain that  view  and  uttered  no  word  against 
it. 

At  the  beginning  of  his  ministry  he 
was  announced  by  John  the  Baptist  as 
the  Lamb  of  God.  The  term  had  no 
significance  whatever,  except  as  it  pro- 
nounced Jesus  to  be  the  antitype  of  all 
the  sacrifices  which  the  children  of  Israel 
had  been  wont  to  offer  in  expiation  of 
their  sins.  John  meant,  if  he  meant  any- 
thing, that  Jesus  was  the  Lamb  of  God 


172  The  Scriptures 

slain  from  the  foundation  of  the  world. 
It  was  so  understood  by  the  disciples, 
though  with  only  a  dim  apprehension  of 
the  manner  in  which  that  intimation  was 
to  be  ultimately  fulfilled.  And  Jesus  al- 
lowed his  disciples  to  rest  in  that  view  of 
his  office  and  work. 

As  he  was  journeying  through  Csesarea- 
Philippi,  he  made  inquiry  of  his  disciples, 
"  Who  do  men  say  that  I  am  ?  "  And 
when  they  answered,  "  Some  say  one 
thing,  and  some  say  another,"  he  further 
inquired,  "  But  who  say  ye  that  I  am  ?" 
Then  Peter  witnessed  his  good  confes- 
sion, "Thou  art  the  Christ,  the  Son  of 
the  living  God!"  Not  only  did  Jesus 
make  no  disavowal,  but  he  distinctly 
consented  in  the  words,  "  My  Father 
which  is  in  heaven  hath  revealed  it  unto 
thee." 

In  the  upper  room  he  met  his  disciples 
after  his  resurrection,  and  bade  doubting 
Thomas  thrust  his  fingers  into  his  wounds 
in  evidence  of  his  triumph  over  death. 


Alleged  Errors  173 

Then  the  skeptical  disciple  fell  before 
him,  crying,  "  My  Lord  and  my  God !  " 
Had  Jesus  been  less  than  very  God  of 
very  God,  he  must,  in  common  honesty, 
have  said  in  that  moment,  like  the 
angel  in  the  Apocalypse,  "See  thou 
do  it  not."  But  he  permitted  this 
act  of  divine  homage,  and  so  by  his 
silence  distinctly  avowed  his  equality 
with  God. 

(2)  With  reference  to  the  Scriptures  as  the 
written  Word.  One  of  the  stock  argu- 
ments of  the  destructive  critics  is  based 
on  the  silences  of  Scripture.  For  ex- 
ample, the  absence  of  a  particular  name 
of  God  from  certain  portions  of  the  record 
is  taken  to  show  that  the  writer  was  un- 
familiar with  it.  And  the  omission  of 
certain  words  and  expressions  from  the 
latter  part  of  the  book  of  Isaiah  proves 
that  Isaiah  could  not  have  composed  it. 
So  far  as  this  argument  is  effective  at  all, 
it  has  a  double  edge  ;  as  will  be  seen 
when  it  is  applied  to  the  singular  silence 


174  The  Scriptures 

of  Jesus  with  respect  to  alleged  errors  in 
the  Word  of  God. 

Is  it  not  extraordinary  that  the  wonder- 
ful Teacher  never  uttered  a  word  or  sylla- 
ble to  indicate  that  he  supposed  that  the 
Book  was  other  than  true  from  beginning 
to  end  ?  How  shall  we  account  for  this  ? 
We  are  in  a  dilemma,  facing  a  three-fold 
alternative.  First:  There  are  no  such 
errors  in  Scriptures.  Second:  The  errors 
are  there,  but  Christ  was  not  aware  of 
them.  Third:  He  was  aware  of  these 
errors  but  did  not  choose  to  tell. 

Of  course  the  destructive  critics  are 
bound  to  reject  the  first  horn  of  this  de- 
lemma.  They  insist  not  that  there  are 
occasional  errors  in  the  Bible  but  that  it 
is  honeycombed  with  them.  There  are 
hundreds,  thousands,  tens  of  thousands 
of  them.  Annals  purporting  to  be  his- 
toric are  pronounced  legendary  or  wholly 
fabulous  ;  prophecies  are  declared  to  be 
ex  post  facto  ;  entire  books  are  con- 
demned as  forgeries.     And  the  errors  in 


Alleged  Errors  175 

question  are  not  unimportant,  but  of  a 
most  vital  character,  touching  every  one 
of  the  great  doctrines  and  ethical  facts  of 
our  religion.  In  other  words  the  destruc- 
tive criticism,  when  frankly  stated,  makes 
the  Bible  a  mingled  tissue  of  truth  and 
falsehood  with  no  means  of  discriminat- 
ing between  them.  So  far  from  being 
"  the  best  of  books,"  if  placed  alongside 
of  a  hundred  reputable  works  of  science 
and  history,  it  becomes  the  least  trustwor- 
thy of  them  all. 

But  if  the  first  horn  of  the  dilemma  be 
impossible  to  a  friend  of  the  destructive 
criticism,  the  second  is  still  more  so,  as- 
suming him  to  be  a  professed  follower 
of  Christ.  Not  long  ago  an  essayist  in  a 
ministers'  meeting  enquired,  "  If  the 
statements  in  the  Pentateuch,  to  which 
Jesus  referred,  were  not  true,  why  did 
he  not  say  so  ? "  to  which  one  of  his  au- 
dience replied,  "  Because  he  did  not  know 
any  better. "  That  is  to  say,  Christ  was 
less  familiar  with  the  true  significance  of 


176  The  Scriptures 

Scripture  than  the  so-called  Biblical  ex- 
perts of  our  time.  This,  however,  is  in 
direct  contravention  of  Christ's  constant 
claim  of  infallible  insight  into  truth  ;  as 
where  he  says,  uIam  the  truth  "  (John 
xiv.  6);  and,  "To  this  end  am  I  come 
into  the  world,  that  I  should  bear  witness 
to  the  truth  "  (John  xviii.  37).  If,  in- 
deed, with  the  assumption  of  omniscience 
on  his  lips,  he  really  knew  less  of  Scrip- 
ture than  our  modern  professors  of  Bibli- 
cal science,  we  will  probably  agree  that 
he  is  not  competent  to  be  our  instructor 
in  spiritual  things.  In  that  case,  it  would 
obviously  be  wiser  for  such  as  are  in 
serious  quest  of  truth  to  sit  as  disciples  at 
the  feet  of  those  who  profess  to  know 
more  than  he.* 

The  third  horn  of  the  dilemma  is  all 
that  remains  ;  namely,  Christ  was  aware 
of  these  alleged  errors,  but  did  not  choose 
to  tell.  Worse  and  worse !  The  scholars 
who  are  exposing  the  alleged  errors  of 

*  See  Appendix  D. 


Alleged  Errors  177 

Scripture  in  our  time  profess  to  be  do- 
ing so  in  the  interest  of  truth  and  honesty. 
They  say  they  are  bound  to  attack  "  Bib- 
liolatry,"  which  is  superstition.  They 
are  constrained  by  conscience  to  unearth 
the  truth  at  all  hazards.  But  what  of 
Jesus,  then,  who  so  strangely  held  his 
peace  ?  O  that  singular  silence  !  That 
eloquent  silence  of  his  !  What  shall  be 
said  of  it  ?  The  Jews  of  his  time  had  an 
implicit  faith  in  their  Scriptures.  They 
would  not  touch  them  with  unwashen 
hands ;  they  weighed  and  measured  the 
relative  value  of  their  words  and  sen- 
tences ;  they  wore  them  as  frontlets  be- 
tween their  eyes.  Here  was  Bibliolatry 
indeed  !  Were  they  mistaken,  and  did 
Jesus  know  it?  How  easily  he  could 
have  corrected  their  misapprehension. 
And  still  did  he  keep  silence  ?  Then,  I 
say,  he  is  not  competent  to  be  our  guide 
in  righteousness ;  for,  evermore,  "  an 
honest  man's  the  noblest  work  of  God." 
The  alternatives  are  before  us.     I  see 


1 7S  The  Scriptures 

no  logical  position  for  a  Christian  to  take 
but  that  the  Scriptures  are  true.  Out 
of  the  ministry  oi  Jesus  there  comes  a 
voice,  solemn  and  conclusive,  which  de- 
termines our  course  in  the  midst  of  con- 
troversy :  "  Let  not  your  heart  be 
troubled  :  believe  in  God.  believe  also  in 
me  .../'/  it  were  not  so.  I  would  have 
told  you. 

The  writer  is  aware  that  the  argument 
at  this  point  is  negative.  It  should  be 
observed,  however,  that  this  is  the  form 
of  argument  most  emphasized  bv  the 
destructive  critics.  Let  it  be  remem- 
bered, too.  that  silence  is  oftentimes 
convincing  where  speech  is  ineffective. 
The  most  serious  misrepresentations  are 
not  (infrequently  made  without  a  word. 
He  who  permits  a  falsehood  to  pass  un- 
challenged enters  into  complicity  with 
it.  Honesty  constrains  us  to  speak  out. 
So  when  Jesus,  professing  to  be  a  teacher 
of  truth,  in  an  age  when  the  Scriptures 
were  challenged  on  every  side  as  vigor- 


Alleged  Errors  179 

ously  as  at  the  present  day,  refused  to  lend 
his  influence  by  word  or  syllable  to  the  ex- 
posure of  alleged  Biblical  errors,   we  are 
justified  in  concluding  that  he  believed 
there  were  no  such  errors.     He  found 
his  disciples   holding  a  certain  view   of 
Scripture  of  which,   had  it  been  errone- 
ous,  he  must  in  common  honesty  have 
dispossessed  them.     A  word  would  have 
accomplished  this,  but  the  word  was  un- 
spoken.    He  left  them  resting   in  their 
simple  faith,  covering  the  case  with  those 
significant  words,  "If  it  were  not  so,  1 
would  have  told  you." 


CHAPTER  VI 

Summary  and  Conclusion. 

rHE  argument  in  Chapter  First 
was  to  show  a  fourfold,  progres- 
sive, Antecedent  Presumption ; 
first,  that  God  would  reveal  himself  to  his 
children  in  some  way  ;  second,  that  this 
revelation  would  probably  be  in  human 
form ;  third,  that  such  an  Incarnation 
must  be  complemented  by  a  Scriptural 
revelation,  since  it  would  be  practically 
ineffective  otherwise  ;  and  fourth,  that 
the  Incarnate  Word  must  be  in  complete 
harmony  with  the  Written  Word. 

In  Chapter  Second  it  was  shown  by  the 
1 80 


Summary  and  Conclusion    181 

cumulative  testimony  of  all  Christ's  ref- 
erences to  Scripture  that  he  was  not 
only  in  perfect  accord  with  it  but  that  he 
positively,  invariably  and  absolutely  ap- 
proved its  truth  and  trustworthiness 
every  way. 

In  Chapter  Third  the  same  fact  was 
demonstrated  by  a  more  specific  and  clas- 
sified survey  of  his  relations  to  the  Written 
Word  ;  first,  in  his  quotations  from  the 
current  versions  of  his  time ;  second,  in 
the  various  titles  which  he  applied  to  it ; 
third,  in  his  positive  affirmations  respect- 
ing its  singular  truth  and  complete  trust- 
worthiness. 

In  Chapter  Fourth  it  was  made  to  ap- 
pear that  Jesus  placed  his  anticipatory 
approval  on  writings  which  were  to  be 
made  by  certain  of  his  inspired  followers 
respecting  his  life  and  doctrine  ;  and  that 
by  this  approval  the  New  Testament  has 
co-ordinate  authority  with  the  Old,  as 
being  equally  true  and  trustworthy. 

And  in  Chapter  Fifth  emphasis  was 


1 82  The  Scriptures 

placed  on  the  eloquent  silence  of  Jesus 
respecting  the  alleged  errors  of  Holy- 
Writ  ;  showing  that,  had  there  been 
such  imperfection  he  must  have  known 
it,  and,  knowing,  must  have  declared  it ; 
leading  us  to  the  inevitable  conclusion 
that,  in  his  judgment,  the  Scriptures 
were  worthy  of  absolute  credence  as  the 
perfect  Word  of  God. 

It  remains,  in  conclusion,  to  consider 
the  question  Do  Christ  and  the  Bible  stand 
or  fall  together  f  To  that  question  we 
unhesitatingly  answer  No.  There  is,  in 
fact,  no  question  as  to  Christ's  or  the 
Bible's  standing  or  falling,  apart  or  to- 
gether. Neither  can  fall  under  any  cir- 
cumstances. They  stand.  They  stand 
together  as  the  mutually  complementary, 
reflexively  corroborative  and  equally 
trustworthy  Incarnate  and  Written 
Words  of  God.  And  they  stand  forever, 
"  for  the  mouth  of  the  Lord  hath  spoken 
it." 

Were  Christ  shown  to  be  other  than 


Summary  and  Conclusion    183 

the  veritable  Son  of  God,  the  Bible  would 
be  proven  a  tissue  of  falsehoods  from  be- 
ginning to  end,  because  it  continually 
testifies  of  him ;  but  no  contingency  is 
more  remote  than  this.  Conversely,  were 
the  Bible  shown  to  be  other  than  com- 
pletely true  and  trustworthy  it  would  be 
impossible,  in  view  of  the  consistent  teach- 
ing of  Jesus  respecting  its  truth,  to  be- 
lieve in  him  as  a  teacher  come  from  God ; 
but  this  contingency  is  as  remote  as  the 
other.  There  have  never  been  wanting 
— nor  are  there  wanting  in  our  time — 
men  who  from  within  as  well  as  from 
without  the  church  have  denied  both  the 
Godhood  of  Christ  and  the  divine  verac- 
ity of  the  Scriptures  ;  but  the  Church  as 
a  compact  whole  was  never  truer  to  the 
Incarnate  Word  and  to  the  Written  Word 
than  it  is  at  this  day. 

The  doctrines  of  the  Incarnation  of 
Christ  and  the  Inspiration  of  the  Scrip- 
tures are  like  the  pillars  Jachin  and  Boaz, 
which  upheld  the  archway  of  the  temple. 


184  The  Scriptures 

They  are  complementary  each  to  the 
other.  There  is  no  Christ  except  the 
Christ  of  the  Scriptures  ;  and  there  is  no 
possibility  of  any  assurance  respecting 
Christ  unless  we  are  warranted  in  placing 
an  unqualified  trust  in  the  testimony  of 
those  Scriptures  as  the  very  Word  of 
God. 

There  are  two  that  bear  witness  to  the 
divineness  of  the  Bible.  One  of  these  is 
the  Bible  itself.  Not  only  its  oft  repeated 
claim,  but  its  very  existence,  is  evidence  of 
its  singular  origin  and  character.  The 
book  is  a  record  of  miracles,  but  it  records 
no  miracle  more  amazing  than  itself.  It 
has  passed  through  the  fire  of  centuries 
without  the  smell  of  smoke  upon  it. 
Other  books,  however  wise  and  wonder- 
ful in  their  time,  yield  to  criticism  or  fall 
behind  in  the  progress  of  the  ages.  Our 
libraries  are  cemeteries.  Here  are  three 
epitaphs  which  are  at  first  sight  scarcely 
recognized — "  Novum  Organum,"  "  Hy- 
driotaphia,"     "  Eikonoklastes. "       Who 


Summary  and  Conclusion    185 

cares  for  them  now  ?  Yet  Novum  Or- 
ganum,  by  Lord  Bacon,  formulated  the 
inductive  system  of  philosophy.  Hydri- 
otaphia,  by  Sir  Thomas  Browne,  was  a 
thesaurus  of  general  information  such  as 
the  world  has  seldom  seen.  And  Eikono- 
klastesy  by  John  Milton,  was  the  historic 
manifesto  against  the  divine  right  of  kings. 
Thus  the  great  books  die,  but  one  lives  ! — 
lives  in  spite  of  opposition  and  the  rasure 
of  time — lives  gloriously  and  is  destined 
to  survive  all. 

It  is  printed  in  about  five  hundred  lan- 
guages and  dialects.  The  interest  which 
it  excites  in  the  universal  mind,  and  by 
which  it  is  separated  infinitely  from  all 
books  of  human  origin,  is  attested  by  the 
fact  that  within  forty-eight  hours  after  the 
Oxford  version  was  issued  two  million 
five  hundred  thousand  copies  were  dis- 
posed of.  The  telegraphic  wires  were 
kept  busy,  to  the  exclusion  of  every- 
thing else,  transmitting  the  four  Gospels 
from  New  York  to  Chicago  in  a  tele- 


1 86  The  Scriptures 

gram  of  more  than  one  hundred  thou- 
sand words  ! 

And  what  shall  be  said  as  to  the  meta- 
physical force  in  this  volume — a  force 
that  grips  hold  of  the  sinner  and  some- 
how transforms  him,  changes  his  heart, 
conscience,  brain,  and  will,  and  makes 
him  a  new  man  ?  The  Chancellor  of 
Queen  Candace  was  converted  by  read- 
ing the  Fifty-third  chapter  of  Isaiah ; 
some  centuries  later  Lord  Rochester,  a 
vicious  infidel,  was  converted  by  reading 
the  same.  And  this  sort  of  thing  is  go- 
ing on  all  the  time.  Has  any  other  book 
such  power  ?  Do  the  Vedas,  the  Zend- 
Avesta,  the  Koran,  the  Analects  of  Con- 
fucius turn  men  about,  reform  them, 
transform  them,  and  set  their  faces  to- 
wards truth  and  righteousness  and  heaven 
and  God  ?  An  old  Highlander  said  to 
Claudius  Buchanan,  "  I  cannot  argue,  I 
cannot  present  any  theological  facts  or 
reasons,  I  cannot  explain  the  process  or 
philosophy  of   revelation ;    but  I  know 


Summary  and  Conclusion    187 

this,  that  when  I  was  a  man  with  an  un- 
governable temper  and  an  evil  character, 
this  Book  got  hold  of  me  and  quelled 
the  tiger  in  me."  Ah,  here  is  the  mas- 
ter fact :  the  Bible  makes  men  !  Take 
your  stand  on  a  Broadway  corner  and 
select  a  hundred  at  random  from  among 
the  passers-by  who  say  that  they  believe 
in  these  Scriptures,  and  another  hundred 
from  those  who  reject  them  ;  let  the  two 
companies  face  each  other  ;  and  contrast 
their  characters.  We  will  abide  the  issue. 
The  best  men  of  the  world  to-day  are, 
as  a  rule,  conspicuously  and  undeniably 
those  who  believe  in  the  Word  of 
God. 

Or  take  a  map  of  the  world  and  draw 
a  line  around  the  nations  that  have  fallen 
under  the  influence  of  this  Book  :  and, 
behold,  you  have  included  all  light  and 
excluded  all  regions  that  lie  in  darkness 
and  the  shadow  of  death !  You  have 
drawn  a  line  between  barbarism  and 
civilization,  between  charity  and  selfish- 


1 88  The  Scriptures 

ness,  between  oppression  and  freedom, 
between  night  and  day  ! 

The  Bible  is  the  only  book  in  existence 
that  boldly  and  conclusively  touches  the 
great  spiritual  problems.  It  is  the  only 
book  that  makes  a  distinct  utterance  with 
reference  to  the  nature  and  character  of 
God,  and  to  the  nature  and  character  and 
destiny  of  man.  It  not  only  sets  forth 
the  great  moral  and  spiritual  truths,  but 
it  so  simplifies  them  as  to  bring  them 
within  the  grasp  of  the  humble  folk : 
as  it  is  written,  "  Except  ye  become  as 
little  children  ye  shall  in  no  wise  see  the 
kingdom  of  God."  And  a  curious  fact 
is  this :  the  truths  thus  presented  are 
capable  of  codification.  No  one  ever 
heard  of  a  doctrinal  system  belonging  to 
Islam  or  Confucianism  or  to  any  re- 
ligion except  ours.  There  is  a  system  of 
truths  represented  in  the  oecumenical 
creeds  of  Christendom  which  is  substan- 
tially— nay,  absolutely — identical  among 
all   the    multitudinous     families    of    the 


Summary  and  Conclusion    189 

church  militant.  These  truths  are  strung 
together  in  logical  and  coherent  order, 
as  if  intended  to  furnish  thus  a  necklace 
of  pearls  for  the  adornment  of  the  Bride 
of  God. 

The  Bible  presents,  also,  the  moral 
standards  of  the  world.  The  courtesies, 
proprieties,  humanities  of  our  civil,  social 
and  domestic  life  are  traced  to  the  Ser- 
mon on  the  Mount.  The  jurisprudence 
of  every  civilized  people  on  the  globe  is 
based  upon  the  Decalogue.  The  Dec- 
alogue and  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount 
are  the  two  brief  historic  summaries  of 
Scriptural  morality,  and  between  them 
stands  Jesus  Christ,  the  exemplar  of  both 
of  these  symbols,  the  only  Man  who  ever 
"  brought  the  bottom  of  his  life  up  to 
the  top  of  his  light,"  the  perfect,  the 
Ideal  Man. 

But  the  crowning  testimony  of  the 
Bible  to  its  own  divineness  is  its  power 
unto  salvation.  Of  all  the  books  in  the 
world  this  is  the  only  one  that  answers 


190  The  Scriptures 

the  universal  question  "What  shall  I  do 
to  be  saved  ?  "  There  are  others  that 
with  more  or  less  correctness,  set  forth 
the  precepts  of  right  living  ;  but  there  is 
none  that  suggests  a  way  of  blotting  out 
the  record  of  the  misspent  past  or  of  es- 
caping from  the  penalty  of  the  broken 
law.  All  through  this  Book,  from  Eden 
to  the  Apocalyptic  vision,  walks  the  ma- 
jestic figure  of  one  who  claims  to  be  the 
deliverer  of  the  soul.  In  the  midst  of 
these  oracles  stands  the  Cross,  throwing 
its  shadow  four  ways  towards  all  the 
horizons  of  human  life.  Out  of  this 
blessed  volume  comes  the  voice,  always 
and  everywhere,  "  He  that  believeth  on 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  shall  be  saved" — 
saved  here  and  hereafter,  saved  from  the 
shame  and  bondage  and  penalty  of  sin. 

Other  books  have  poems,  but  no  other 
sings  the  songs  of  salvation  and  gives  the 
troubled  soul  a  peace  that  floweth  like  a 
river.  Other  books  have  eloquence,  but 
no  other  enables  us  to  behold  God  him- 


Summary  and  Conclusion    191 

self  stretching  out  his  pierced  hands  and 
pleading  with  men  to  turn  and  live. 
Other  books  have  history,  but  no  other 
tells  the  story  of  divine  love  reaching 
from  the  remote  councils  of  eternity  to 
the  consummation  on  Calvary,  "  the  old, 
old  story  of  Jesus  and  his  love."  Other 
books  have  science,  but  no  other  can 
give  the  soul  a  definite  assurance  with 
respect  to  spiritual  life,  so  that  it  may  say, 
"  I  know  him  whom  I  have  believed  and 
am  persuaded  that  he  is  able  to  guard 
that  which  I  have  committed  unto  him 
against  that  day."  Other  books  set  forth 
philosophy,  but  no  other  makes  us  wise 
with  respect  to  those  great  doctrines 
which  centre  in  the  living  God. 

Thus  the  Book  bears  witness  to  itself. 
Add  to  this  the  testimony  of  Jesus  as  trav- 
ersed in  the  foregoing  chapters  —  the 
positive  testimony  of  his  consistent  affir- 
mations, not  infrequently  sealed  with  a 
solemn  "  Verily,  verily  I  say  unto  you," 
— his  negative  testimony  in  the  eloquent 


192  The  Scriptures 

silence  which  he  observed  with  reference 
to  all  those  alleged  errors  which  are  so 
magnified  and  emphasized  by  the  de- 
structive critics  of  our  time — and  what 
standing  ground  is  left  for  hesitation  on 
the  part  of  any  true  child  of  God  ? 

Aye,  the  Written  Word  and  the  In- 
carnate Word  stand  together  !  Neither 
can  fall ;  but  a  man  will  fall  from  either 
when  he  lets  go  the  other. 

Blessed  Bible  !  Old-fashioned  but  not 
obsolete  ;  deep  beyond  the  plummet  of 
philosophy,  yet  clear  enough  to  reveal 
thy  deepest  treasures  to  children's  eyes  ; 
sharp  as  a  Damascus  blade  to  pierce  a 
guilty  conscience,  but  comforting  as 
balm  of  Gilead  to  the  wounds  of  the 
penitent ;  fierce  as  the  lightning  against  all 
wrong  and  error,  but  gentle  as  a  mother's 
touch  in  time  of  trouble  !  Dear  Book 
that  our  fathers  and  mothers  touched 
with  reverent  hands  and  pressed  with  lov- 
ing lips,  thou  shalt  be  the  man  of  our 
counsel  also,  a  lamp  unto  our  feet  and  a 


Summary  and  Conclusion    193 

light  unto  our  way  !  In  sorrow  we  will 
find  thy  solace  through  our  tears ;  in 
weariness  we  will  drink  from  thy  crystal 
depths  as  soldiers  at  a  wayside  fountain  ; 
in  weakness  we  will  gird  our  loins  with 
thine  exceeding  great  and  precious  prom- 
ises ;  and  in  our  last  journey  thy  living 
Word  shall  be  our  rod  and  staff  to  lean 
upon  until  we  come  to  heaven's  gate  ! 

M 


APPENDICES 


It  is  conceded  that  the  doctrine  of  the  incarnation  is  supra- 
rational.  The  most  veritable  facts  in  human  life  and  experi- 
ence are  not  infrequently  beyond  the  necessity,  not  to  say  the 
possibility,  of  argument.  We  thank  no  man  for  tearing  apart 
the  leaves  and  petals  of  a  rose  to  help  our  appreciation  of  it. 
It  would  be  a  useless  task  to  dissect  the  vocal  apparatus  of  a 
skylark ;  let  me  see  it  soaring  through  the  ether  and  hear  its 
matchless  song  I  I  watch  the  sun  go  down  in  golden  glory  ; 
and  a  discourse  on  the  refraction  of  light  just  then  would  be 
an  impertinence.  O  man  of  science,  be  still  and  let  me  drink 
this  beauty  in  I  Or  who  shall  argue  as  to  a  mother's  love  ? 
Who  shall  estimate  it  by  a  mathematical  computation  of  the 
number  of  kisses  imprinted  on  an  infant's  cheek  ?  So  with 
this  doctrine  of  the  incarnation  ;  you  cannot  reduce  it  to  a 
full  scientific  fact.  Before  you  reach  your  quod  erat  dcmon- 
strandum,  the  life  and  glory  have  departed.  Let  this  suffice. 
God  is  manifest  in  flesh.  Let  me  bow  and  silently  behold 
him.  There  is  a  magnetism  in  the  presence  of  Christ,  a  light 
in  his  eyes,  a  warmth  in  his  hands,  a  life  out  of  his  death,  that 
forces  me  to  cry  like  the  centurion  beneath  his  cross,  "  Verily, 
this  is  the  Son  of  God !  " 

But  the  doctrine  of  the  incarnation,  though  it  transcends 
reason,  is  not  contra-rational.  It  is  a  mystery.  It  is  above, 
but  not  against,  reason.  It  lies  distinctly  in  the  province  of 
faith.  The  man  who  makes  the  assertion  that  no  fact  is  to  be 
received  which  cannot  be  apprehended  by  the  senses,  is  in 
deep  water ;  for  we  live  and  move  and  have  our  being  in  a 
realm  of  mystery.  I  will  agree  to  explain  the  dual  nature  of 
Christ  if  any  one  will  explain  to  me  the  dual  nature  of  man. 
I  am  flesh  and  spirit ;  no  scientist  in  the  world  can   elucidate 

*9S 


196  Appendices 

the  connection  and  co-operation  of  these  two.  I  lift  my  hand. 
What  does  that  mean  ?  The  power  of  mind  over  matter. 
My  reason  spoke  to  my  will,  my  will  commanded  a  sinew ; 
and,  behold,  it  was  done  !  Thus  spirit  and  flesh  co-operate  ; 
my  dual  personality  is  a  fact ;  no  philosopher  can  explain  it ; 
none  can  deny  it. 

B 

If  it  be  conceded  that  an  incarnation  of  Deity  is  not  im- 
probable, the  question  arises,  Which  of  the  many  alleged  in- 
carnations in  the  religions  of  the  centuries  is  the  true  one  ? 
And  this  is  a  question  of  intrinsic  comparison. 

Take  Osiris,  who  was  alleged  by  the  Egyptians  to  have 
come  down  from  heaven  and  "  conferred  many  incalculable 
benefits  upon  men."  He  was  murdered  by  his  enemy,  Typhon, 
who  cut  his  body  in  pieces  and  threw  it  into  the  Nile.  His 
faithful  wife  Isis  with  many  tears  sought  these  fragments,  and 
when  they  were  placed  together,  lo  1  Osiris  was  alive  again ; 
and  he  liveth  for  evermore,  enthroned  in  the  judgment -hall  of 
the  invisible  world.  This  has  been  justly  pronounced  "a  won- 
derful forefeeling  of  the  gospel  narrative  " — an  outline,  though 
dim,  of  the  incarnation,  life,  suffering,  vicarious  death,  resur- 
rection and  exaltation  of  Jesus  the  Christ.  But  history  has 
disposed  of  the  claims  of  Osiris.  He  lies,  like  his  mummied 
devotees, 

"  Cased  in  cedar  and  shut  in  sacred  gloom, 
Swathed  in  linen  and  precious  unguents  old, 
Painted  with  cinnebar  and  rich  with  gold, 
Resting  in  solemn  salvatory, 

Sealed  from  the  moth  and  the  owl  and  the  flittermouse 
With  his  name  on  his  brow." 

The  ancient  Persians  were  wont  to  speak  of  Sosioch  as  the 
Coming  One  who  would  put  down  the  black  Ahriman  and 
usher  in  the  golden  age.  But  they  waited  in  vain.  He  never 
came  1 

The  modern  Parsees  reject  all  thought  of  a  Saviour.  "  There 
is  no  salvation,"  they  say.  "  A  man  must  suffer  the  penalty 
of  whatsoever  evil  he  hath  done.  The  only  saviour  is  a  vir- 
tuous life."     It  was  certain  of  their  number,  however,  who, 


Appendices  1 97 

made  heartsick  by  hope  deferred,  followed  the  star  to  Bethle- 
hem and  paid  their  tribute  to  the  veritable  Son  of  God. 

In  the  religion  of  the  Hindus  there  are  many  avatars;  but 
among  them  all  Igni,  or  Brahma,  is  regarded  as  distinctly  the 
incarnation  of  the  divine  essence.  The  portrayal  of  his  char- 
acter, as  given  in  the  Vedas,  is  a  sufficient  answer  to  his 
claims. 

In  the  Buddhist  conception  of  Gautama  we  have  an  apothe- 
osis of  man  rather  than  a  divine  incarnation.  The  central 
thought  of  the  system  is  human  deification  by  self-culture.  It 
appears  that  Gautama  was  a  rationalist,  since  his  last  appeal 
was  made  to  the  human  intellect.  He  was  also  a  pantheist, 
inasmuch  as  he  taught  that  the  universal  mind  is  everything 
and  all.  And  he  was  practically  an  atheist,  because  he  af- 
firmed that  aside  from  the  impersonal  Adi-Buddha  there  is  no 
God. 

In  the  Mythology  of  the  Greeks  there  was  no  incarnation, 
but,  instead,  a  singularly  beautiful  though  futile  deification  of 
Nature  in  its  multitudinous  forms.  If  we  enter  their  Pan- 
theon we  shall  find  Nature  enthroned,  the  four  elements  dei- 
fied, and  sacrifices  laid  upon  the  altars  of  Storm  and  Season 
and  Fruitfulness. 

In  the  Mohammedan  religion  the  possibility  of  an  incarna- 
tion is  denied  in  these  words  from  the  Koran : 

"  Say  there  is  one  God  alone  ? 
God  the  eternal. 

He  begetteth  not,  is  not  begotten, 
And  there  is  none  like  unto  him." 

But  this  denial,  emphasized  by  the  historic  enmity  of  Islam 
toward  Christianity,  is  itself  a  recognition  of  the  universal 
thought;  while  its  avowed  fatalism,  as  formulated  in  Karma, 
"the  doctrine  of  consequences,"  is  a  confession  of  the  ulti- 
mate impotence  of  a  religion  possessing  a  book  without  a 
Christ  to  complement  it.  The  fatal  defect  of  Islam  is  expressed 
by  Lord  Houghton  in  these  words  : 

"  Mohammed's  truth  lay  in  a  holy  book ; 
Christ's  in  a  sacred  life. 


1 98  Appendices 


"  So  while  the  world  rolls  on  from   change  to  change, 
And  realms  of  thought  expand, 
The  latter  stands  without  expanse  or  range, 
Stiff  as  a  dead  man's  hand. 

"  While,  as  the  life-blood  fills  the  growing  form, 
The  spirit  Christ  has  shed 
Flows  through  the  ripening  ages  fresh  and  warm, 
More  felt  than  heard  or  read." 

It  thus  appears  that  the  false  religions  pay  tribute  to  the 
importance  of  an  incarnation,  however  vaguely  and  imper- 
fectly they  may  realize  it. 

It  is  not  for  us  to  say  whether  such  anticipations  of  a  great 
Deliverer  are  lingering  echoes  of  the  protevangel  (Gen.  iii. 
15),  or  the  expressions  of  an  intuitive  conviction  that  a  good 
God  will  not  leave  a  sin-stricken  world  to  an  irremediable 
doom;  in  any  case,  we  rejoice  to  know  that  even  the  nations 
that  lie  in  darkness  and  the  shadow  of  death  are  not  wholly 
without  a  longing  after  God.  They  have  slender  clues  of  gos- 
pel truth,  which,  were  they  followed,  would  lead  bewildered 
souls  out  of  the  dark  labyrinths  into  the  light.  Thus,  God  is 
exonerated  and  the  nations  are  without  excuse  (Rom.  i.  20), 
if,  becoming  vain  in  their  imaginations,  they  choose  the  un- 
broken night  rather  than  the  endless  day. 


The  errors  referred  to — which  are  frequently  made  to  appear 
much  more  numerous  and  important  than  they  really  are — may 
be  grouped  as  follows : 

(1)  Such  as  might  naturally  be  expected  in  the  process  of 
transcription.  It  would  be  supposed  that  numberless  errors 
would  have  occurred  in  this  manner.  But  they  are  in  fact  so 
comparatively  few  and  have  so  little  bearing  on  the  important 
truths  of  Scripture  as  to  warrant  the  belief  that  even  copyists 
and  translators  have  been  under  the  care  of  a  special  provi- 
dence. 

(2)  It  is  averred  that  there  are  statements  in  Scripture 
which  conflict  with  science.  This  is  denied  in  Mo,  and  by 
none  more  vigorously  than  by  many  scientists  of  established 


Appendices  199 

name.  It  is  conceded  that  the  Scriptures  account  for  the 
present  order  of  things  in  a  manner  not  altogether  harmonious 
with  certain  so-called  "  scientific  "  hypotheses  of  these  times  ; 
but  there  is  an  infinite  chasm  between  a  hypothesis  and  a  sci- 
entific fact ;  and  it  is  likely  to  be  a  long  while  before  an  un- 
substantiated dream  can  be  successfully  pitted  against  an 
authority  which  has  withstood  the  test  of  centuries  as  the 
Word  of  God. 

(3)  There  are  said  to  be  statements  in  Scripture  which  are 
mutually  contradictory.  This  also  is  denied,  absolutely,  ex- 
cept in  the  case  of  literal  or  numerical  discrepancies  of  little 
or  no  importance,  and  due  wholly  to  transcription.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  wonderful  harmony  of  the  Scriptures — com- 
posed by  above  forty  writers  at  intervals  along  a  period  of 
sixteen  hundred  years — affords  a  most  striking  proof  of  di- 
vine superintendence. 

(4)  There  are  variations  of  expression  in  the  sacred  record, 
frequently  called  "  discrepancies,"  which  on  closer  examina- 
tion are  seen  to  present  the  truth  from  various  points  of  view. 
Such  are  the  differences  in  the  four  Gospels.  If  I  were  desir- 
ous of  forming  an  accurate  conception  of  the  personal  appear- 
ance of  the  German  Emperor,  I  could  not  do  better  than  to 
send  to  Berlin  for  photographs  as  follows :  A  right  profile,  a 
left  profile,  a  half  front  and  a  full  face.  This  is  precisely  what 
the  four  evangelists  have  given  us  in  their  biographies  of 
Jesus :  three  portraits  from  diverse  standpoints,  and  one  "  full 
front  "  in  which  he  appears  as  the  eternal  Son  of  God.  The 
differences  of  expression  in  these  four  Gospels — allowing  scope 
for  the  exercise  of  the  writers'  individual  traits — afford  us  a 
satisfactory  means  of  forming  a  full  and  clear  judgment  as  to 
the  life  and  character  of  Jesus  Christ. 


How  do  those  who,  while  professing  to  be  Christians,  deny 
the  truth  of  Scripture,  escape  from  this  dilemma  ?  By  intro- 
ducing a  peculiar  theory  of  the  "  Kenosis  "  or  self-emptying  of 
Christ.  The  suggestion  is  in  Phil.  ii.  5-1 1  :  "  Have  this  mind 
in  you,  which  was  also  in  Jesus  Christ  :  who,  existing  in  the 
form  of  God,  counted  not  the  being  on  an  equality  with  God 
a  thing  to  be  grasped,  but  emptied  himself,  taking  the  form  of 


200  Appendices 

a  servant,  being  made  in  the  likeness  of  men  ;  and  being  found 
in  fashion  as  a  man,  he  humbled  himself,  becoming  obedient 
even  unto  death,  yea,  the  death  of  the  cross." 

Now  what  was  it  that  the  only-begotten  Son  of  God  gave 
up  when  he  "  took  upon  him  the  form  of  a  servant  and  was 
made  in  the  likeness  of  men  ?  "  His  Godhood  ?  No  ;  but 
the  "  form "  of  it.  His  essential  glory  ?  No ;  but  the 
"  form  "  of  it. 

It  must  have  been  a  great  day  in  heaven  when  the  Second 
Person  of  the  Godhead  set  out  for  earth  to  accomplish  his 
great  work.  He  vanished ;  and  when  next  he  appeared,  lo  1 
it  was  as  a  child  wrapped  in  swaddling  bands  and  lying  in  a 
manger.  Between  the  gate  of  heaven  and  Bethlehem,  some- 
thing had  fallen  from  him.  Not  his  Godhood ;  it  is  un- 
thinkable that  he  should  cease  to  be  God.  But  he  had  given 
up  the  outward  form  of  deity.  There  was  no  halo  about  the 
Christ -child.  "  There  was  no  form,  nor  comeliness,  nor  any 
beauty  that  we  should  desire  him."  He  had  emptied  himself 
of  the  form  of  God,  and  taken  upon  him  the  form  of  a  man. 
He  was  exclusively  neither  God  nor  man ;  but  Theanthropos, 
the  God-man. 

He  was  made  in  this  "fashion"  for  a  threefold  purpose: 
(i)  To  enter  so  into  participation  of  our  human  nature  that 
he  might  become  a  high  priest  able  to  be  touched  with  a  feel- 
ing of  our  infirmities ;  (2)  to  veil  in  such  wise  the  divine 
majesty,  upon  which  no  man  can  look  and  live,  as  to  adjust  it 
to  our  fleshly  eyes ;  and  (3)  to  prepare  himself  for  the  great 
sacrifice.  As  Anselm  says,  "  He  must  be  man  that  he  may 
suffer,  and  by  the  same  token  he  must  be  God,  that  he  may 
suffer  enough  for  all  the  children  of  men." 

Let  it  be  remembered,  however,  that  in  emptying  himself  of 
the  form,  he  still  retained  the  essential  nature  of  God.  Now 
and  then  his  disciples  caught  a  glimpse  of  its  glory.  On  the 
Mount  of  Transfiguration  in  the  shadow  of  the  luminous 
cloud,  his  garments  were  white  and  glistering,  and  his  face  as 
the  sun  shining  in  its  strength. 

In  like  manner  he  emptied  himself  of  the  outward  form  and 
exercise  of  his  divine  attributes.  In  becoming  a  servant,  he 
held  these  prerogatives  in  abeyance.  But  they  were  always  at 
his  command,  standing  about  him  like  genii  awaiting  his  nod 
and  beck.  Where  was  his  omnipresence?  He  whom  the 
heaven   of  heavens  could  not  contain,  consented  to  be  en- 


Appendices  201 


closed  within  the  narrow  bounds  of  a  manger,  a  carpenter- 
shop,  a  judgment-hall.  Yet  on  occasion  barred  doors  and 
gates  could  not  restrain  him.  And  his  consciousness  of  om- 
nipresence was  manifest  in  his  promise,  "  Lo,  I  am  with  you 
alway." 

Where  was  his  omniscience  ?  In  speaking  of  the  Great  As- 
size, he  said,  "  But  of  the  day  and  hour  knoweth  no  man,  no, 
not  the  Son,  but  the  Father  only."  In  other  words,  he  had 
put  away  the  exercise  of  his  omniscience.  Yet  on  occasion 
he  recalled  it ;  as  when  he  perceived  past  and  future  events, 
and  declared  his  acquaintance  with  the  secret  imaginations  of 
the  hearts  of  men.  All  things  were  naked  and  open  before 
him.  There  was  indeed  an  obscuration,  but  in  no  wise  an  ob- 
literation, of  his  power  of  infinite  sight.  He  was  the  great 
mind-reader.     He  needed  no  cathode  rays  to  help  him. 

And  where  was  his  omnipotence  ?  He  who  created  the 
worlds  consented  to  earn  his  livelihood  in  a  carpenter-shop. 
He  was  anhungered  and  athirst,  like  other  men  ;  he  lay  asleep 
on  the  steersman's  cushion  of  the  little  boat,  wearied  with  the 
labors  of  the  day  ;  but  mark,  when  the  storm  rises,  and  the 
sailors  bend  over  him,  crying,  "  Master,  carest  thou  not  that 
we  perish  ? "  how  he  summons  his  almighty  power,  lifts  his 
hands  above  the  surging  waves,  and  quiets  them  by  his  word, 
"  Be  still  1  "  until,  like  naughty  children,  the  winds  and  bil- 
lows sob  themselves  to  sleep. 

But  in  his  death  this  "self-emptying"  went  further  still. 
"  He  became  obedient  unto  death."  The  self-existent  One, 
centre  and  source  of  life  itself,  bowed  to  the  king  of  terrors, 
yet  still  remained  Prince  of  life.  When  Peter  drew  the  sword 
in  Gethsemane  Jesus  rebuked  him,  saying,  "  Thinkest  thou 
that  I  cannot  beseech  my  Father,  and  he  shall  even  now  send 
me  more  than  twelve  legions  of  angels  ?  "  In  other  words,  if 
he  consented  to  die,  it  was  not  because  he  had  not  the  power 
to  live.  "  I  have  power  to  lay  down  my  life,"  said  he,  "  and 
I  have  power  to  take  it  again."  So  when  Pilate  said,  "  Know- 
est  thou  not  that  I  have  power  to  release  thee  and  have  power 
to  crucify  thee  ?  "  he  answered,  "  Thou  wouldest  have  no 
power  against  me,  except  it  were  given  thee  from  above." 
He  was  not  a  struggling  victim  like  Iphigeneia,  the  daughter 
of  Agamemnon,  who  was  dragged  to  the  altar  for  the  deliver- 
ance of  the  Greeks.  He  came  to  Calvary  as  a  volunteer, 
saying,  "  Here  am  I,  in  the  volume  of  the  book  it  is  written 


202  Appendices 

of  me,  I  rejoice  to  do  thy  will,  O  my  God."  He  addressed 
himself  to  his  great  purpose  in  pursuance  of  an  eternal  cove- 
nant for  the  salvation  of  ruined  men.  In  full  possession  of 
infinite  power,  he  chose  to  be  feeble  like  other  men. 

It  is  evident  from  the  foregoing  that  no  just  or  Scriptural 
interpretation  of  the  Kenosis  can  give  any  warrant  whatsoever 
for  the  astounding  assertion  that  Jesus  was  ignorant  of  the 
facts  in  the  controversy  as  to  the  truth  of  Scripture.  He  did, 
indeed,  "  lay  his  glory  by  "  when  he  assumed  our  flesh ;  but 
it  was  precisely  as  a  king  puts  aside  his  crown  and  scepter  and 
purple  robe.  He  does  not  lay  them  beyond  his  reach.  He 
does  not  discard  his  royal  functions  or  responsibilities.  He 
does  not  abdicate  when  he  "  lays  them  by."  On  occasion  he 
instantly  reassumes  them  ;  so  that  even  when  discrowned  and 
disrobed,  he  is  still  a  king,  supreme  and  regnant,  with  all  his 
essential  honors  thick  upon  him. 


INDEX  OF  SUBJECTS 


Abreast  of  the  age,  The  Bible,  99. 

Affirmations  of  Jesus  as  to  Truth  of  Scripture,  121,  seq. 
Agreement  of  the  Incarnate  and  the  Written  Word,  15. 
Attitude  of  Jesus  toward  the  Scriptures,  18,  seq. 
Authority  of  Jesus,  39. 

ultimate  for  Christians,  preface,  103,  104. 
Autograph,  original,  of  the  Scriptures,  91-94. 


B 


Baptism  of  Jesus,  28-30. 
Baptist,  John  the,  47-49. 
Bibliolatry,  45,  46. 
Brugsch,  Herr,  discoveries  of, 


Cain  and  Abel,  141. 

Caesarea-Philippi,  journey  through,  56,  seq. 

Capernaum,  Christ  at,  39. 

Christ  and  the  Bible,  mutually  complementary,  183,  184. 

Christendom  testifies  to  Truth  and  Power  of  Scriptures,  14, 

187,  iSS. 
Consciousness,  testimony  of,  7. 
"Contains,"  the  mischief  of  the  word,  126,  127. 
Creation,  story  of,  approved  by  Christ,  140. 

order  of,  96,  footnote. 
Credentials,  Christ's,  49,  63,  71-73,  82,  83. 
Critic,  Jesus  not  a,  94,  seq. 


203 


204  Index  of  Subjects 


Criticism,  Lower,  95,  99,  100. 

Higher,  100-103. 
Cross,  Christ  on  the,  84. 


D 

Danger,  the  Bible  in  no,  139. 

of  losing  confidence  in  the  Bible,  139. 
Definition,  importance  of,  138. 
Deuteronomy,   references  of  Christ  to,  147,  148. 
Dilemma  of  the  destructive  critics,  174,  seq. 
Disciples,  qualified  to  write  Scripture,  162-167. 
Disciples  called,  32,  ^- 

Discredited  parts  of  Scripture  approved  by  Christ,  14,  seq. 
Dives  and  his  brothers,  154-157. 
Divorce,  69. 

Doctors,  Christ  among  the,  23-26. 
Doctrines,  system  of,  in  the  Bible,  188,  189. 


E 

Elijah,  coming  of,  58,  59. 

Emmaus,  journey  to,  85,  86. 

Errors  in  current  versions,  89. 

Events,  Scripture  tested  by,  13. 

Exodus,  the,  143,  144. 

Experts,  Biblical,  an  advisory  board  proposed,  124,  125. 

Explaining  away  the  statements  of  Jesus,  121. 


Fables,  not  to  be  used  in  verifying  facts,  152,  153. 
Father,  relation  of  Christ  to  the,  62. 
Feast  of  Dedication,  Jesus  at  the,  63. 
Fire,  the  Scriptures  under,  12-15. 
Flood,  story  of  the,  141. 


Gethsemane,  82. 

Greeks,  the,  who  asked  to  "  see  Jesus,"  71,  72. 


Index  of  Subjects  205 


H 

Home,  instruction  of  Jesus  at,  19,  20. 
Honesty  of  Jesus,  168,  169,  176,  177. 
Hope  of  Israel,  170,  171. 
Householder,  parable  of  the,  51,  52. 


Inauguration  of  Christ  into  his  ministry,  27,  28. 
Incarnation,  antecedent  probability  of  an,  4. 

a  universal  thought,  5. 

a  mystery,  7. 

woven  into  the  Scriptures,  7. 
Inspiration  of  the  Scriptures  affirmed  by  Christ,  128-135. 
defined  by  him,  129,  130. 

J 

Jonah,  the  story  of,  approved  by  Christ,  149-153. 


Kenosis,  the,  27,  footnote.     Appendix  D. 

Key  of  knowledge,  66. 

Kingdom,  patent  factor  in  the,  158. 

Knowledge  of  the  Scriptures,  Christ's,  59,  60,  175,  176. 


Lamb  of  God,  31,  32,  171. 

Law,  the,  115,  seq. 

Law  of  Moses,  119,  120. 

Law  and  Prophets,  118. 

Law,  Prophets  and  Hagiographa,  1 1 5-1 17, 

Lawyer,  a  certain,  65. 

Leaders,  Christ  and  the  religious,  65-69,  75-79,  105. 

Letter  from  Home,  the  Scriptures  a,  11. 

Literature,  the  Bible  as,  96,  134,  135. 

Loaves,  Christ's  teaching  in  connection  with  the,  53. 

Lot's  wife,  143. 


206         Index  of  Subjects 

M 

Ministry,  the  Galilean,  35-55. 

the  Judean,  33-35. 

the  Perean,  55-71. 
Miracle,  the  Bible  its  own  best,  184,  185. 
Mission,  consciousness  of  Christ  as  to  his,  26,  27. 
Morality  of  the  Scriptures,  189. 
Moses  and  the  Prophets,  156,  157. 

N 

Nature,  vain  search  for  God  in,  5. 
Nazareth,  Christ's  sermon  at,  36-38. 
New  Testament,  Christ's  provision  for,  162,  seq. 
truth  and  authority  of,  165-167. 
Nicodemus,  Christ's  interview  with,  34. 

O 

Objections  to  Scripture,  anticipated  by  Christ,  153. 
Old  Testament,  origin  of  the  title,  104. 

P 

Parables,  50. 

Palm  Sunday,  71. 

Paralytic  of  Bethesda,  41. 

Passion  week,  Christ's  preaching  during,  71-85. 

Philosophy,  vain  search  for  God  in,  6. 

Power  of  the  Scriptures,  186. 

Patriarchs,  historicity  of  the,  142. 

Pentateuch,  the,  no,  seq. 

its  authority,  146. 
its  truth  affirmed,  144,  145. 
Prayer,  Christ's  sacerdotal,  81,  106,  107,  no. 
Preaching  of  Jesus,  Scriptural,  38,  seq. 
of  the  Disciples,  64. 
for  our  time,  45-47,  1 59-161. 
Prejudice  in  favor  of  the  Scriptures,  102. 
Probability,  antecedent,  of  an  incarnation,  4. 
of  a  Scripture,  9. 
of  their  mutual  agreement,  15. 
Propagation  of  the  Scriptures,  185,  186. 


Index  of  Subjects  207 


Revelation  of  God,  Bible  the  only,  12. 
Rule  of  faith  and  conduct,  Christ's,  28-30. 
Ruler,  a  certain,  70. 


Sabbath,  Christ's  teaching  as  to  the,  43,  44. 

Salvation,  through  the  Scriptures,  68-70,  97,  footnote,   135, 

139,  153,  186,  187,  189-192. 
Scripture,  antecedent  probability  of  a,  9. 
meaning  of  the  title,  108,  seq. 
School,  Jesus  at,  20. 
"Search  the  Scriptures,"  134-137- 
Sermon  on  the  Mount,  44,  45. 
Silence  of  Christ,  argument  from  the,  168-179. 

as  to  himself,  170-173. 

as  to  Scripture,  I73"179- 
Sinners,  Christ  the  friend  of,  52. 
Sodom,  destruction  of,  143, 
Sower,  parable  of  the,  49,  50,  105,  158-160. 
Supper,  the  Lord's,  80. 

Stand  or  fall  together,  Christ  and  the  Bible,  182,  seq.,  192. 
Summary  of  the  argument,  180,  seq. 


Teachers,  Christ's  denunciation  of  false,  41-43. 
Temple,  first  purging  of  the,  33. 

second  purging  of  the,  73. 
Temptation  of  Jesus,  30,  31. 

Testimony  of  the  Bible  as  to  its  own  truth,  184-191. 
Testimony  of  Christ  as  to  the  truth  of  the  Bible,  191,  192. 
Theology  of  the  Scriptures,  97,  footnote. 
Titles  of  the  Bible,  103,  seq. 
Traditional  view  of  Inerrancy,  93. 
Traditions  of  the  Elders,  54,  55. 
Transfiguration,  the,  57,  58. 

Truth  of  Scripture  denied  by  the  destructive  critics,  174,  175. 
Truth  of  Scripture  affirmed  by  Christ,  41,  85,  122,  seq. 


208  Index  of  Subjects 

u 

Unbelief,  no  excuse  for,  157. 

V 
Versions,  current,  Christ's  use  of,  87,  seq. 

substantial  correctness  of,  90. 

W 

Water,  the  living,  60,  61. 

Woman  of  Samaria,  Christ's  interview  with  the,  « 
Woman  taken  in  adultery,  the,  61. 
Word,  the  Written  and  the  Incarnate,  15-17. 
their  agreement,  15. 

w°LdM  f  GSi,the  ScriPtures  so  designated,  104,  seq. 
Worthless  Bible,  a,  126,  127.  H 


INDEX  OF  TEXTS 


Genesis  ii.  7 
Exodus  xxiv.  4 
Numbers  xxviii.  9 


131 
28 


116 


Deuteronomy  vi.  13,  16      i< 
viii.    3  1 1 


Psalm  xxii.  1 
xxxv.  19 
xli.  9 
lxix.  4 
lxxxi.  6 
ex. 

cxviii.  22 
exxi.    19 

Proverbs  viii.  23 

Isaiah    xii.  3 

xliv.  3 

lv.  1 

lv.  10-13 

Ixi.  1-3 

Ezekiel  xxxvii.  9 

Hosea  vi.  6 

Micah  iv.  2 
N 


84 

80, 115 

80,  109 

"5 

"5 

77,132,  133 

109 

80, 115 

99 

no 

no 
no 
160 
109 

l3~ 

52 

53 


Zechariah  xiii.  7 


Matthew  ii.  5-10 

112 

iii.  13-17 

28 

iv.     1— 1 1 

147 

v.  17,  18 

147 

17-19 

45 

vii.  12 

118 

viii.  11 

142 

ix.  13 

52 

xi.    7-15 

49 

10 

112 

13 

119 

20-22 

148 

xii.    5 

116 

5-7 

43 

9-14 

44 

38-40 

49.  15° 

4i 

149 

42 

49 

xiii.  1-19 

158 

14.  15 

5° 

19-21 

105 

37,  51-  52 

5i 

xv.  2,  3 

54 

4-9 

55 

xvii.  10-13 

59 

xviii.  52 

159 

xix.  4 

140 

4-6 

70 

7 

"3 

209 


2IO 


Index  of  Texts 


Matthew  xix  7,  8 

146 

Luke  iv  21 

109 

xxi.  13 

73, 

112 

25,  26,  27 

148 

16 

7i 

v.    14 

47 

42 

73 

viii.  11 

158 

xxii.  29-33 

in 

x.  16 

165 

3J,32 

142 

23,24 

64 

37-40 

76, 

120 

25-28 

H 

42-46 

77 

26 

116 

xxiii.  2 

146 

xi.  27,  28 

50 

23 

116 

28 

105 

35 

141 

45,52 

66 

xxiv.  14 

159 

xii.  11,  12 

133 

15 

79, 

149 

xvi.  15 

67 

37-39 

142 

16,  17 

68 

38,39 

80 

17 

116 

xxvi.  24 

80, 

114 

29,31 

146 

31 

80, 

114 

3i 

69, 

154 

52-54 

82, 

114 

xvii.  28,  29,  32 

143 

55,  56 

112 

xx.  28 

37,38 

"3 
144 

Mark       i.  21,  22 

39 

xxi.  22 

79- 

149 

ii.  1,  2 

47 

24 

79 

iv.  14,  17 

105 

xxii.  15,  16 

144 

33 

163 

37 

81 

vi.  2 

38 

42 

82 

vii.  6 

"3 

67-71 

83 

9 

135 

xxiv.  25,  26 

85 

13 

1 05 

27 

146, 

149 

viii.  31 

56 

44 

120 

ix.  12,  13 

59 

"3 

*•  3 

146 

John      i.    1,  14 

16 

4 

"3 

ii.  13-22 

34 

xii.  10 

109 

iii.     1-2 1 

34 

18-23 

158 

14 

144 

19 

"3 

iv.     1-42 

35 

19-23 

74 

v.     1 

41 

24-27 

75 

36-47 

43 

36 

129 

38 

105 

xiv.  48,  49 

82 

39110,125 

135, 

149 

vi.  45 

53- 

"3 

Luke     ii.  41-50 

23 

47-5 1 

54 

iv.  18, 19 

37 

49 

144 

John    vii.  10 

IS.18 
16 

19.  23 
19,24 

23        o 

37,38 
38 

viii.     2-1 1 
17,  18 
56,58 
x.  25 

34-36 

Ml.  35,  36 

xiii.  18 

xiv.    2 

6 

26 

xv.  24,  25 

25 

26,  27 

xvi.  12,  13 

xvii.    6 

12 

14 

17 

xviii.  37 


W«?;tT  oj 

f  Texts 

21  I 

119 

Acts        i.  1 

163 

60 

39 

Romans 

146 

iii.  1-2 

158 

60 

120 

II  Corinthians 

61 

iii.  I4»IS 

104 

no 

62 

Ephesians 

114,  "5 

vi.  17 

31 

M3 

106 

Phillipians 

114,115 

63 

no 

ii.  5-1 1 

27 

199 

II  Timothy 

72 

iii.  16,  17 

130 

80,  109 

170 

Hebrews 

176 

iv.  12 

i59 

164 

106 

II  Peter 

8o,  114,  115 

i.  21 

132 

164 

163 

I  John 

107 

iv.  2 

9 

no 

81,  107 

Revelation 

81, 107,  122 

i.  19 

165 

5>  84,  176 

xxii.  18,  19 

166 

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